Congress Criticizes Govt's Efforts on Ganga Cleanliness

The Congress claimed on Friday that the Centre and the Bihar government have not fulfilled their promise of cleaning the Ganga and said in the last 11 years, the exercise of ridding the river of pollutants has become just an "election jumla".

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh claimed that not only in Bihar, "Mother Ganga" has become more polluted than ever before throughput its stretch.

"Most of the schemes launched in the name of Ganga cleanliness campaign have proved to be a black hole of corruption. After the foundation-stone laying, inauguration and heavy publicity, neither any work is visible nor any concrete result," he alleged in post in Hindi on X.

Ramesh's attack came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in line with his commitment to the conservation and rejuvenation of the Ganga, inaugurated six sewage treatment plants (STPs) under the Namami Gange project, worth over Rs 1,800 crore.

Ramesh said, "The advertisement-loving prime minister is once again on a tour of Bihar. No matter how many fake announcements the prime minister makes, no matter how many ribbons he cuts for free advertising, the truth is that the double-engine government in Bihar has completely failed to meet the expectations of the common people." The Congress leader claimed that oppression against the deprived classes is at its peak in Bihar, the law-and-order situation is extremely bad, criminals have become unbridled and the common citizens are helpless.

Everyday, there are reports of killings, robberies and violence against women, he claimed.

There is no employment opportunity for youngsters in the state and they are forced to migrate from Bihar, the former Union minister said.

"During this visit, the prime minister will also express his electoral concern about the pollution of Mother Ganga. But the truth is that in the last 11 years, 'Ganga cleaning' has become just an election jumla, which is suddenly remembered before every poll," he added.

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) itself is exposing the terrible condition of Ganga pollution in Bihar, Ramesh said.

The Congress accused the BJP-led Centre and the JD(U)-BJP government in Bihar of not fulfilling their promise of purifying the Ganga and claimed that the condition of the river is such that its water is neither drinkable nor suitable for bathing.

Addressing a press conference, party MP Manoj Kumar cited a report to claim that of the 13 STPs built for the Ganga and its tributaries in Bihar, only seven are working.

He said the promise made to purify the Ganga water under the "Namami Gange" project has turned out to be false.

"Narendra Modi and (Bihar Chief Minister) Nitish Kumar together neither took any step towards flood control nor made the Ganga water drinkable. Even the NGT imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on the Bihar government," he claimed.

Kumar said due to the high amount of faecal coliform (FC) bacteria, the NGT has stated that the river's water is neither fit for drinking nor for bathing.