Parliament Question: Status of Namami Gange Programme

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3437 ANSWERED ON 23.03.2026 STATUS OF NAMAMI GANGE PROGRAMME 3437. SHRI SANJAY YADAV: Will the Minister of Jal Shakti be pleased to state: (a) total amount spent till date since the inception of Namami Gange Programme (NGP) and manner in which it has been utilized across key components like sewage treatment plants; (b) percentage of the overall targets NGP achieved so far in areas like pollution abatement, biodiversity conservation and sewage infrastructure, major milestones met during the last five years; (c) whether river Ganga continues to be listed among world's most polluted rivers, with dysfunctional STPs, untreated sewage and high fecal coliform levels in stretches, reason project failed to fully meet its objectives of making Ganga clean and rejuvenated; and (d) current FCC levels compared to 2014 at points like Haridwar, Varanasi and Patna? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI (SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY) (a) Since inception of the Namami Gange Programme (June, 2014 to 15th March, 2026), the National Mission for Clean Ganga has disbursed ₹ 21,340 crores to various implementing/executing agencies, of which ₹ 16025.97 crore are for the sewage treatment projects. (b) The Government of India (GoI) implemented the Namami Gange Programme (NGP) Phase-I for the rejuvenation of river Ganga and its tributaries, up to March, 2021. Subsequently, Phase-II was sanctioned for the period till March, 2026. Under Namami Gange Programme, a total of 524 projects have been sanctioned, out of which 355 projects (68%) have been completed as on February, 2026. In the last five years, a total of 208 projects have been completed. The major achievements during the last five years are as follows: i. A total of 76 sewerage infrastructure projects with a combined treatment capacity of 3200 MLD have been completed in last 5 years. ii. In addition, 71 new projects are sanctioned at an estimated cost of ₹12,641 crores, aimed at creating an additional treatment capacity of 2,210 MLD. iii. For industrial pollution abatement, two projects, Mathura CETP (6.25 MLD) and Jajmau CETP (20 MLD), have been completed; 1iv. Biodiversity Conservation: Seven Biodiversity Parks in seven districts (Mirzapur, Bulandshahar, Hapur, Budaun, Ayodhya, Bijnore and Pratapgarh) of Uttar Pradesh and 5 priority wetlands in Uttar Pradesh (3), Bihar (1) and Jharkhand (1) have been sanctioned; v. NMCG, through the State Forest Department, has implemented a forestry intervention project along the main stem of river Ganga. 33,024 hectares area have been afforested with an expenditure of about ₹ 414 crores; vi. A total of 203 lakhs of Indian Major Carp (IMC) fingerlings have been ranched in the Ganga to conserve fish biodiversity and prey base for river Dolphins, and ensure the livelihood of fishers in the Ganga basin under the special project implemented by Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute (CIFRI); vii. Science-based species restoration programme, rescue, and rehabilitation programme for aquatic species like Dolphins, Otters, Hilsa, Turtles, and Ghariyal in collaboration with Wild Life Institute of India (WII), Dehradun and State Forest Department, have shown marked improvements in biodiversity with increased sightings of Dolphins, Otters, Hilsa, Turtles, and other riverine species; viii. Gangetic Dolphin Conservation: Gangetic dolphin surveys covered 8507 km across 28 rivers. Nationwide Population Status of Ganges dolphin – 6324. ix. India’s first Dolphin Rescue Ambulance was developed and inaugurated on 13th January, 2026 by the Hon’ble Minister at Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, enabling safe rescue and translocation; 8 Gangetic dolphins were rescued and released. x. A citizen-led Soons-Saathi network (100 volunteers across 250 km), 160 trained personnel, 2,000 sensitised community members, and 15 Dolphin Clubs strengthened early reporting and conservation outreach. xi. Gharial Conservation: Gharial assessments across 22 rivers recorded 3,037 individuals, with habitat models indicating only 5.6% highly suitable habitat, underscoring the need for flow regulation and habitat protection. xii. Threatened turtle species including 15 (10 radio tagged) captive hatched Chitra indica, 60 Hardellathurjii (10 radio tagged) and 20 Batagurkachuga (all radio tagged) re-wilded in Yamuna, Sarju and Ganga rivers, respectively with robust monitoring protocol. Dispersal and survival maps ready. xiii. Total 387 vulnerable nest (8257 eggs) of endangered Batagur turtle species were protected in Chambal through two riverside hatcheries. This ensured safe return of 7979 hatchlings back into the river, marking an overall hatching success of 96.7%. xiv. Technology-driven conservation was advanced through the institutionalization of SMART- based riverine patrolling across 210 km of the Chambal River in Uttar Pradesh. (c) & (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: 2Ganga Main Stem – State-wise Comparison (2018 vs 2025) State 2018 Polluted Priority 2025 Polluted Priority Trend/Observation Stretch (2018) Stretch (2025) 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 D/S→ V Marginal pollution Bhagalpur Khalgaon D/S remains Jharkhand No PRS — No PRS — — West Bengal Triveni → III Baharampore → V improved Diamond Harbour Diamond Harbour Based 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:  Farrukhabad to Purana Rajapur, Kanpur.  Dalmau, Raebareli.  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. Faecal coliform (FC) values at Harki Pauri Ghat is 135 MPN/100mL) and d/s Haridwar is 140 MPN/100mL in 2025. Value(median) of FC observed at Assighat, Varanasi is 2500 MPN/100mL in 2014 and 790 MPN/100mL in 2025. Value(median) of FC at NIT Gandhi ghat, Patna is 5400 MPN/100mL in 2014 and 2200 MPN/100mL in 2025 and Patna d/s Ganga Bridge is 3000 MPN/100mL in 2014 and 1950 MPN/100mL in 2025. 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. ***** 3