Parliament Question: Reuse of Wastewater and River Rejuvenation

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 720 ANSWERED ON 04.12.2025 REUSE OF WASTEWATER AND RIVER REJUVENATION †720. DR. RAJESH MISHRA: SMT. VIJAYLAKSHMI DEVI: SHRI DULU MAHATO: SHRI SUNIL KUMAR: SHRI BALABHADRA MAJHI: SMT. MALA RAJYA LAXMI SHAH: SHRI MANOJ TIWARI: SHRI PRADEEP KUMAR SINGH: SHRI YADUVEER WADIYAR: SHRI NARAYAN TATU RANE: SHRI TRIVENDRA SINGH RAWAT: SHRI CHAVDA VINOD LAKHAMSHI: SHRI DINESHBHAI MAKWANA: SHRI YOGENDER CHANDOLIA: SHRI BIDYUT BARAN MAHATO: SHRI BHARATSINHJI SHANKARJI DABHI: SHRI SUKHJINDER SINGH RANDHAWA: SHRI BUNTY VIVEK SAHU: SHRI HASMUKHBHAI SOMABHAI PATEL: SHRI PRATAP CHANDRA SARANGI: DR. VINOD KUMAR BIND: SHRI GANESH SINGH: SHRI ALOK SHARMA: SMT. HEMA MALINI: SHRI ANIL FIROJIYA: SMT. KAMALJEET SEHRAWAT: SHRI BHARTRUHARI MAHTAB: SMT. KAMLESH JANGDE: SHRI JAGDAMBIKA PAL: DR. SANJAY JAISWAL: 1SHRI SHANKAR LALWANI: SHRI KHAGEN MURMU: SHRI MITESH PATEL BAKABHAI: SHRI NABA CHARAN MAJHI: Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state: (a) the measures being taken by the Government to address gaps in sewage treatment, industrial pollution management and floodplain protection; (b) the States that have demonstrated notable progress in reducing polluted river stretches or enhancing wastewater reuse along with the expenditure incurred in this regard, State-wise including Chhattisgarh; (c) the mechanism adopted by the Government to ensure regular monitoring of water quality, real time data system and inter-State coordination for achieving a pollution-free and resilient river ecosystem along with the details of efforts made in this regard in Sidhi Lok Sabha Constituency; (d) the details of convergence with schemes such as MGNREGS to promote water conservation; (e) the progress made in this regard in Uttar Pradesh, particularly in Siddharthnagar district; (f) the details of the funds sanctioned and released for implementation of such schemes, State-wise including Punjab; (g) whether the Government proposes to provide additional financial/technical assistance for capacity enhancement of sewage treatment plants, riverbank protection and stormwater management projects in Madhya Pradesh, particularly in Chhindwara district and if so, the details and current status thereof; and (h) the measures taken/being taken to conserve rivers and ponds in Bhopal Lok Sabha Constituency including Sehore district? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI (SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY) (a) Cleaning and rejuvenation of rivers is a continuous process. It is the primary responsibility of the States/Union Territories (UTs), local bodies and industrial units to ensure proper treatment of sewage and industrial effluents to prescribed norms before discharge into rivers, other water bodies, coastal waters or land. To meet the gap in sewage treatment, the Ministry of Jal Shakti provides financial and technical assistance to States/UTs through the Central Sector Scheme of Namami Gange for river Ganga and its tributaries, and the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of the National River Conservation Plan (NRCP) for other rivers. Apart from this sewerage infrastructure is created under programs like Atal Mission for Rejuvenation & Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and Smart Cities Mission of Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs. Discharge of Industrial Effluents is monitored by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the respective State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs)/ Pollution Control Committees (PCCs) through the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and 2take punitive action against violators. States/UTs/Local Bodies and industrial units are required to install sewage and effluent treatment plants and comply with prescribed standards. In addition, the industries are encouraged to reduce their waste water generation by technological advancement, reuse/recycle of waste water and maintain Zero Liquid Discharge wherever possible. As per CPCB, there are total of 4493 Grossly Polluting Industries (GPIs). Out of which, 3633 number of industries are operational and 860 industries have been closed down on their own. Amongst the operational industries, 3031 industries are reported to be complying with the environmental standards, while show-cause notices issued to 572 industries, closure directions issued to 29 noncomplying industries and direction issued to one unit. The Ministry of Jal Shakti has issued Technical Guidelines on Flood Plain Zoning to States/UTs for regulating development activities in flood-prone areas and mitigating associated risks.NMCG has developed Urban River Management Plans in coordination with National Institute of Urban Affairs which integrate river sensitive planning into statutory master plans. (b) As per the latest report of CPCB published in October, 2025 on 'Polluted River Stretches for Restoration of Water Quality' reveals that total number of Polluted River Stretches (PRSs) has decreased from 351 in 2018 to 296 in 2025. The report further shows that 149 PRS in 22 States/UTs have been delisted and 71 PRSs located in 20 States/UTs have shown improvement in river water quality between 2018 and 2025. States/UTs showing improvement in pollution levels of some of the river stretches as given in the reports of 2018 and 2025 include Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Goa, Himachal, Gujarat, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal. National Mission for Clean Ganga has developed a National Framework for Reuse of Treated Water that provides guidance to States in developing the State policies on reuse of treated waste water. Some of the notable examples of reuse of water are from States of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Haryana and Tamil Nadu. The State-wise details of expenditure incurred on enhancing reuse of wastewater is not maintained by the Ministry. (c) CPCB, through its National Water Quality Monitoring Programme (NWQMP), regularly monitors the quality of water in the rivers. CPCB has issued directions to all the GPIs to install Online Continuous Effluent Monitoring System (OCEMS) with real time data connectivity to CPCB/ SPCBs for self monitoring. This mechanism is applicable for all over the country , in Sidhi Lok Sabha Constituency manual water quality is being monitored regularly. Government through its legal & regulatory framework, basin-wise approach, pollution control systems & their funding etc., ensures inter-state coordination. (d) Water conservation is the main component of various flagship schemes/ campaigns of the Government which include Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme 3(MGNREGS), Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY), Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA), Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain (JSA:CTR), Atal Bhujal Yojana etc. These schemes are implemented through inter-sectoral convergence to promote water conservation. Besides, the Government has mandated a minimum 65% of MNREGS fund allocation for water conservation, water harvesting & related works in over exploited & critical rural blocks (Dark Zones). (e) As per by the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board, there is no GPIs located in Siddharthnagar district discharging into river Ganga and Yamuna main stem and their tributaries. (f) The State-wise details of funds sanctioned and released including Punjab under National River Conservation Plan (excluding Ganga & its tributaries) and under Namami Gange Programme is at Annexure-1. The statement indicating the artificial recharge structures created under Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari 1.0 initiative is at Annexure-II. (g) & (h) Creation of new treatment capacity through setting up of new STPs under schemes viz. Namami Gange, NRCP, AMRUT 2.0, Smart Cities Mission etc. is ensured. Besides, upgradation of existing STPs through retrofitting of old STPs & adoption of modern & efficient technologies, strengthening of operation & maintenance of existing STPs and improving sewer network is also promoted by the Government. Government also takes structural & non-structural measures, ecological conservation and coordinated institutional arrangements for river bank protection. Besides, several measures for stormwater management have been taken by Government which include strengthening of urban drainage under AMRUT and Smart Cities Mission, rejuvenation of lakes and wetlands under National Plan for Conservation of Aquatic Eco-systems and implementation of stormwater guidelines by Central Public Health Environmental Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO) and National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). The aforesaid measures are applicable in all the States/UTs of the Country including Madhya Pradesh. As inputs received from Madhya Pradesh that Urban Development Department (Nagar Nigam) has installed STP capacity of 28 MLD at Chhindwara M.P. In Bhopal, Water Quality of 4 major ponds namely Upper Lake , Lower Lake ,Kaliasot and Kerwa reservoir are regularly being monitored by Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board (MPPCB) and the water quality is found in B category which is fit for outdoor bathing. The sewage treatment plant is installed for sewage treatment and action is being taken under Amrit Yojna implemented by Urban Development Department. In Sehore district, the Budhni town is located on river Narmada and 2 Sewerage Treatment Plants are installed to intercept sewage of Budhni town. *** 4ANNEXURE-I ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (f) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 720 TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 04.12.2025 REGARDING “REUSE OF WASTEWATER AND RIVER REJUVENATION”. (a) State-wise details of sanctioned cost and funds released under National River Conservation Plan, Centrally Sponsored Scheme (excluding Ganga and its tributaries) (Rs. in crore) S. No. State Sanctioned Cost Funds Released by Central Govt. 1 Andhra Pradesh 110.21 288.06 2 Telangana 345.72 3 Jammu & Kashmir 342.65 169.05 4 Jharkhand 3.14 4.26 5 Gujarat 1875.29 1052.73 6 Goa 95.23 51.43 7 Karnataka 66.25 47.83 8 Maharashtra 3109.85 940.10 9 Madhya Pradesh 20.16 12.46 10 Manipur 190.12 100.93 11 Odisha 92.74 63.40 12 Punjab 774.43 516.14 13 Rajasthan 172.60 25.01 14 Tamil Nadu 908.13 623.65 15 Kerala 115.76 7.78 16 Sikkim 608.12 406.85 17 Nagaland 140.12 68.33 Total 8970.52 4378.01 (b) State-wise details of sanctioned cost and funds released under Namami Gange Programme, Central Sector Scheme (Ganga and its tributaries) (Rs. in crore) S.No State Sanctioned Cost Fund Released By Central Govt. 1. Uttarakhand 1743.00 918.00 2. Uttar Pradesh 16201.00 5553.00 3. Bihar 7752.00 3404.00 4. Jharkhand 1310.00 250.00 5. West Bengal 4657.00 1620.00 6. Haryana 218.00 148.00 7. Delhi 1987.00 1522.00 8. Himachal Pradesh 12.00 4.00 9. Rajasthan 258.00 131.00 10. Madhya Pradesh 670.00 - Total : 34808.00 13550.00 5ANNEXURE-II ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (f) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 720 TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 04.12.2025 REGARDING “REUSE OF WASTEWATER AND RIVER REJUVENATION”. State-wise progress under Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari 1.0 (Status as on 31.05.2025) S. No. State Completed Work 1 ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDS 119 2 ANDHRA PRADESH 36338 3 ASSAM 1715 4 BIHAR 134930 5 CHHATTISGARH 405563 6 CHANDIGARH 11 7 DELHI 201 DADRA AND NAGAR HAVELI AND 8 92 DAMAN AND DIU 9 GOA 7 10 GUJARAT 133522 11 HIMACHAL PRADESH 148 12 HARYANA 7465 13 JHARKHAND 2798 14 JAMMU AND KASHMIR 6129 15 KARNATAKA 115303 16 KERALA 5396 17 LADAKH 1 18 MAHARASHTRA 7149 19 MEGHALAYA 3356 20 MANIPUR 34 21 MADHYA PRADESH 278852 22 MIZORAM 1 23 NAGALAND 63 24 ODISHA 101174 25 PUNJAB 6093 26 PUDUCHERRY 161 27 RAJASTHAN 364968 28 SIKKIM 18 29 TELANGANA 520362 30 TAMIL NADU 73394 31 TRIPURA 12305 32 UTTARAKHAND 2333 33 UTTAR PRADESH 141055 34 WEST BENGAL 27 Total 2361083 (Source: Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari portal) ***** 6