National

`Pace of Ganga Action Plan slow'

By Our Staff Correspondent

NEW DELHI, FEB. 7 . The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has said that the pace of developing infrastructure to control pollution in Ganga and its tributaries was slow and the money released was either not enough or diverted for other purposes.

The Ganga Action Plan (GAP) - I, which was started in February 1985 and scheduled to be completed by March 1990, had been extended until March 2000 when it was declared it would be completed by 2001. It has now been further extended to December 2008, which clearly indicates the extremely slow pace of development work being done for the past 18 years. "It speaks volumes of the inefficiency and lack of foresight on the part of the implementing agencies,'' the report said. The major task under the GAP was to tackle pollution from municipal sewage that accounted for about 75 per cent of the river pollution, by creating sewage treatment plants, industrial effluents treatment plants, toilet complexes, electric crematoria and improvement of bathing ghats and river front developments.

The Committee, headed by Buta Singh, noted that the Ministry of Environment and Forests did not fix any deadline for submission of detailed project reports, the basic document for expenditure sanction needed from the States for phase-II of the Plan. While pointing out that GAP has failed to treat the river eco-system, the Committee suggests that there should be a provision for the creation of river regulation zone under an autonomous body.

Further, it observed that only 45 per cent of the grossly polluting industrial units had installed effluent treatment plants, of which 18 per cent did not function properly or did not meet the technical standards.

The panel observed that the people at large were either ignorant of or totally alienated from the objectives of GAP thereby creating a gulf between public and the schemes and projects. This ignorance also prevented them from playing an active role in assisting regulatory authorities in the implementation of schemes. "The Committee find that while on the one hand, States have complained of lack of funds being a main reason for delay and failure to achieve the target of schemes, on the other, many have failed even to spend the money and fair amount is left unutilised.''

While criticising the Bihar Government for misuse of funds allotted under GAP, the Committee also suggests fixing of responsibilities for suspended work by the West Bengal Government and deplored the State Governments for their non-cooperative attitude of officials in the implementation of the schemes.

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