Parliament Question: Expenditure under Namami Gange Programme

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3443 ANSWERED ON 23.03.2026 EXPENDITURE UNDER NAMAMI GANGE PROGRAMME 3443. SHRI SAKET GOKHALE: Will the Minister of Jal Shakti be pleased to state: (a) the total expenditure under the Namami Gange Programme since its launch in 2014; (b) whether the Ganga meets the prescribed bathing water quality standards at all monitoring stations; (c) the number of STPs commissioned, their actual performance and the gap between sewage generation and treatment capacity in Ganga basin cities; and (d) whether the objective of Nirmal Dhara (unpolluted flow) has been achieved for any stretch of the Ganga? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI (SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY) (a) Since inception of the Namami Gange Programme (June 2014 to 15 March 2026), the National Mission for Clean Ganga has disbursed Rs.21,340 crore to various agencies for implementation of projects to rejuvenate river Ganga and its tributaries. (b) & (d) Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), carries out manual water quality monitoring of the river Ganga at 112 locations across five Ganga main-stem States- Uttarakhand-19; Uttar Pradesh-41; Bihar-33; Jharkhand-04; and West Bengal-15. As per CPCB report on Polluted River Stretch (PRS) 2025, the following information about Ganga main stem pollution is available: Ganga Main Stem – State-wise Comparison (2018 vs 2025) State 2018 Polluted Priority(2018) 2025 Polluted Priority(2025) Trend/Observation Stretch Stretch Uttarakhand Haridwar → IV No PRS — Improved and PRS Sultanpur stretch removed Uttar Pradesh Kannauj → IV Bijnor → IV / V Partially improved Varanasi Tarighat Bihar Buxar to V Bhagalpur V Marginal pollution Bhagalpur D/S→ remains Khalgaon D/S Jharkhand No PRS — No PRS — — West Bengal Triveni → III Baharampore → V improved Diamond Harbour Diamond Harbour 1Based on the water quality data (median values) of the river Ganga for the year 2025 (January to August), the following observations are made: (i). pH & Dissolved Oxygen (DO) are the most critical parameters of river health. The pH & DO of River Ganga meet the required norms for bathing criteria at all the locations of River Ganga. (ii). Water quality of river Ganga is conforming with the bathing criteria w.r.t. Bio- chemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) in the entire stretch of river Ganga in Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Bihar & West Bengal, except the following locations/stretches: o Farrukhabad to Purana Rajapur, Kanpur. o Dalmau, Raebareli. o D/s Mirzapur to Tarighat, Ghazipur (except two locations namely U/s Varanasi, After confluence Gomti & U/s Ghazipur) in Uttar Pradesh. (iii). As per CPCB report, Faecal Coliform (median) primary water quality criteria for bathing is met in the entire stretch of river Ganga in Uttarakhand & Jharkhand and certain stretches of UP, Bihar and West Bengal while Faecal Streptococoi (median) the primary water quality criteria for bathing is met in the entire stretch of river Ganga in Uttarakhand, Bihar & Jharkhand and certain stretches of UP and West Bengal. As per the biomonitoring conducted during 2024-25 at 50 locations along river Ganga and its tributaries and 26 locations along River Yamuna and its tributaries, the biological water quality (BWQ) predominantly ranged from ‘Good’ to ‘Moderate’. The presence of diverse benthic macro- invertebrate species indicates the ecological potential of the rivers to sustain aquatic life. (c) Under the Namami Gange Programme, a total of 181 Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) have been commissioned and are currently operational as on February, 2026. The approx. quantity of sewage generated from river Ganga front towns vis-a-vis installed capacity of Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs), State-wise is as follows: Approx. Sewage Generation in Ganga front Installed capacity of STPs State towns (MLD) (MLD) Uttarakhand 239.8 346.8 Uttar 1255.2 Pradesh 1499.0 Bihar 480.0 400.0 Jharkhand 12.0 15.5 West Bengal 1571.5 716.3 TOTAL 3558.5 2977.5 Approximately 3558.5 MLD (Million liters per day) sewage is generated in Ganga-front towns for which a total of 163 STPs have been installed capacity of 2977.5 MLD. In addition, in Kolkata, East Kolkata Wetland caters to around 900 MLD of sewage treatment. ***** 2