Parliament Question: Treatment of Sewage Generated in Ganga Basin

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 879 ANSWERED ON 04.12.2025 TREATMENT OF SEWAGE GENERATED IN GANGA BASIN 879. Dr. KAKOLI GHOSH DASTIDAR: Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state: (a) whether it is a fact that in the Ganga basin approximately 12,000 million litres per day of sewage is generated, for which presently there is a treatment capacity of only around 4,000 million litres per day; (b) if so, the reasons therefor; (c) the details of the most polluted sections of the Ganga river; and (d) the steps taken/being taken to make Ganga pollution-free and the proposed timeline to achieve the same? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI (SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY) (a) & (b) As per the available information, total sewage generated in the 5 Ganga States (main stem) is about 10,160 MLD against which the available STP capacity of 7820 MLD and to bridge the gap, the projects of 1,996 MLD are at various stages of completion. The major reasons for delays in the initiation as well as completion of the project are following: 1. Identification of suitable land for the establishment of new Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) 2. The issuance of statutory clearances such as right of way for sewage related networks, obtaining permissions for road cutting, No Objection Certificates (NoCs) from competent authorities like forest and revenue departments. To address and overcome these challenges, the Nation Mission for Clean Ganga has been actively involved in closely monitoring the status of the projects including preparation of fresh DPRs. NMCG regularly conducts comprehensive review meetings under the chairmanship of the competent authority and through the Central Monitoring Committee (CMC) to evaluate the progress, identify roadblocks and ensure timely resolutions. (c) 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. 1As per CPCB report on Polluted River Stretch (PRS) 2025 following information about Ganga main stem pollution is available: Ganga Main Stem – State-wise Comparison (2018 vs 2025) State 2018 Polluted Stretch Priority 2025 Polluted Priority Trend / Observation (2018) Stretch (2025) Uttarakhand Haridwar → Sultanpur IV No PRS — Improved and PRS stretch removed Uttar Pradesh Kannauj → Varanasi IV Bijnor → Tarighat IV / V Partially improved Bihar Buxar to Bhagalpur V Bhagalpur D/S → V Marginal pollution remains Khalgaon D/S Jharkhand No PRS — No PRS — — West Bengal Triveni → Diamond III Baharampore → V improved 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, Raibareilly.  D/s Mirzapur to Tarighat, Ghazipur (except two locations namely U/s Varanasi, After confluence Gomti & U/s Ghazipur) in Uttar Pradesh. 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. The population of dolphins in the river Ganga has shown a marked increase over the past decade. From an estimated baseline of 2500 to 3000 individuals in 2009, the population rose to approximately 3500 in 2015 and further to around 6327 individuals as per the nationwide survey conducted during 2021- 22023. This represents more than a twofold increase since 2009. In the Ganga basin the 2021-2023 assessment across 17 tributaries confirmed dolphin presence in multiple rivers where they were previously unrecorded, such as the Rupnarayan, Girwa, Kauriyala, Baba, Rapti, Bagmati, Mahananda, Ken, Betwa, and Sind. (d) The steps taken by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) for improving the water quality along the river Ganga and its tributaries are as under: 1. A total of 216 number of sewerage infrastructure projects (STPs) costing ₹ 34,809 crores have been taken up for remediation of polluted river areas with treatment capacity of 6,561 Million Liters per Day (MLD). 138 STPs with a capacity of 3,806 MLD have been completed and made operational; 2. For industrial pollution abatement, 3 nos. of Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETPs) have been sanctioned, i.e., Jajmau CETP (20 MLD), Banther CETP (4.5 MLD) and Mathura CETP (6.25 MLD). Two projects, Mathura CETP (6.25 MLD) and Jajmau CETP (20 MLD), have been completed; 3. Annual inspection of Grossly Polluting Industries (GPIs): Inspection of GPIs started in 2017. In 2025, 3,726 Grossly Polluting Industries (GPIs) were inventoried in the 8th round of inspection. So far, 3,023 GPIs out of 3,726 GPIs have been inspected through TPA (8th round). Among these, 204 were found self-closed and 1,347 were operational. Among 1,347 operational GPIs, 966 were found to comply and 381 were found non-compliant. Among 381 non-complying GPIs, SCN was issued to 379 GPIs and closure direction was issued to 2 GPIs. 4. At NMCG, an online dashboard “PRAYAG” has been operationalized for continuous monitoring of river water quality; the performance of Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) etc. on the Ganga and Yamuna River; 5. NMCG successfully implemented the minimum e-flow norms notified in October 2018, ensuring continuous environmental flow in the river Ganga. Regular compliance is being effectively monitored by the Central Water Commission (CWC). 6. 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; 7. 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; 38. A total of 160 lakhs of Indian Major Carp (IMC) fingerlings have been ranched in the Ganga since 2017 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); 9. 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; 10. “Ganga Knowledge Portal” is a pioneering initiative developed in-house by the National Mission for Clean Ganga, serving as a centralized repository for comprehensive resources on water resource management. This platform is engineered to facilitate access for students, research scholars, stakeholders, and the general public to a vast array of materials (1,295 documents), including journals, publications, books, technical articles, research reports; data sets (District River Maps, STP performance and river atlas) and coffee table books. By concentrating on the intricacies of water resource challenges, Ganga Knowledge portal aims to enhance awareness and foster informed decision-making in this critical sector; 11. A total no. of 139 District Ganga Committees (DGC) have been constituted which conducts 4M (Monthly, Mandated, Minuted and Monitored) meetings regularly. As of October 2025, more than 4,632+ meetings have been conducted; 12. Ganga Task Force (GTF) was raised in the state of Uttar Pradesh to assist NMCG in carrying out its mandated tasks, such as (a) Plantation of trees to check soil erosion; (b) Management of Public Awareness/Participation campaigns; (c) Patrolling of Sensitive Rivers Areas for Biodiversity protection; (d) Patrolling of Ghats, etc.; 13. Comprehensive public awareness campaigns have been undertaken to instill a sense of responsibility and engagement among the public in efforts to clean and conserve the Ganga River. These include - Ganga Utsav, Nadi Utsav, regular cleanathons and plantation drives, Ghat Par Yoga, Ganga Aartis, etc. The efforts are also supported by dedicated cadres of Ganga saviours, such as Ganga Praharis, Ganga VicharManch, etc. Cleaning of river is a continuous process and Government of India is supplementing the efforts of the State Governments in addressing the challenges of pollution in river Ganga and its tributaries by providing financial and technical assistance under Namami Gange Programme. ***** 4