User:Abhishek1008/Save ganga

Save the Ganga

Stop hydel projects on the Bhagirathi from Gangotri till Utarkashi

To begin I would like to quote Jawaharlal Nehru who wrote in his will and testament: “The Ganga, especially, is the river of India beloved of her people, round which are intertwined her memories, her hopes and her fears, her songs of triumph, her victories and her defeats. She has been a symbol of India ’s age long culture and civilization, ever-changing, ever flowing and yet ever the same Ganga ”. Ganga Ji is many things to many people – she is the life support to millions who live on her banks, she is the symbol of our heritage and tradition, she is worshipped by most Indians as the divine mother, she is an integral part of the cultural, ritual and sacred ethos of the people and a large part of the Indian population has a strong bond with this river. This bond is symbolised by the significant fact that most Indian households aspire to keep some Ganga Jal to purify the environment. Tradition has it that the Ganga was formed as a result of the ‘Tapasaya’ (penance) of Raja Bhagirath and is like an heirloom handed down through generations. Projects That Threaten the Ganga. In fact the very existence of the Ganga is threatened by over 25 hydel projects that are either ongoing or are planned to be undertaken on the Bhagirathi. The ongoing Hydel projects are:- 1.	Bhairon Ghati 1 and 2. 2.	Loharinag Pala 3.	Pala Maneri 1 and 2. 4.	Maneri Bhali 1 and 2. 5.	Kothli Bhel 1A, 1B and 2. The declaration of Ganga Ji as a national river by the PM on 04th Nov 2008 has been reduced to a mere label. The river Ganga continues to be polluted by effluents and discharges from a number of industries and drainage systems. The number of ongoing projects on Ganga Ji and many more in the pipeline continue to increase in complete denial of their environmental sustainability. Environmental Damage. These projects entail the diversion of the Bhagirathi through concrete tunnels almost from Gangotri all the way to Uttarkashi and at the same time the original river bed remains barren and dry. This unfortunately is the case because in the present scheme of development the head on one dam is planned be exactly at the tail of another dam below, thus altering the free flow of water. Presently the NTPC is making a 14 Km tunnel for the Loharinag Pala Project. The tunnelling of the water for such long stretches causes irreparable damage to the flora and fauna and the mineral and oxygen content in the water. As a result Ganga Jal which is known not to putrefy even though it is kept for long periods of time could in fact loose this distinctive characteristic. The drying of the original riverbed also prevents the refreshing of ground water. Aquifers that are critically important for habitation and agriculture are being depleted. The depletion of ground water also effects natural springs. At Uttarkashi, Maneri Bhali 2 joins into the Tehri Dam and therefore there is really no Ganga Ji between Gangotri and Rishikesh. The change in the composition of the river and the construction of numerous dams is also causing the elimination of various aquatic species. The population of fish in the river has suffered severely specifically the famous ‘Hilsa’ fish which is fast declining due to excessive pollution and the creation of dams that prevents the upstream migration of the fish for breeding and is now in fact endangered. It goes without saying that a drop in fish population also affects the livelihood of the hundreds of people who depend upon it. Recent studies indicate that the important micro-organism Bacteriopharge that helps the Ganga in resuscitating itself is also fast declining. Global Warming and the Ganga. A study conducted by Drew Shindell a climatologist at NASA reveals that the emission of Methane due to bacterial decomposition contributes to 20 times more to Global Warning than CO2. The area covered by the Gangotri Glacier is reducing at the rate of 23-25 square meters per day and is likely to completely disappear by 2030. The Tehri dam is hardly a few kilometres away from Gangotri and from its stagnant waters the emission of Methane gas is inevitable; this emission is likely to accelerate the decimation of the Gangotri glacier. Worse still the Loharinag Pala project will further aid the destruction of the Gangotri Glacier. Adverse Effects of the Project on the Population: The extensive project work has led to such a level of contamination of the Bhagirathi that the water for agriculture has been found to contain cement deposits. Villagers have to go great distances to collect water which is extremely laborious in the mountains. The disruption of village roads and paths as a result of the manmade landslides exacerbates the problem. This has also resulted in school children having to take large detours to reach school. The devastation of the environment has also resulted in a loss of livelihood to the people. There is also a depletion of the grasslands for the grazing of cattle. Some of the villages that have been affected by the ongoing work on the Loharinag Pala project are Kunjan, Therang, Salang, Bhukki, Bhangali and Huri. The Inefficiency of Hydel Projects. It is a shame that the existing hydel projects are not functioning at their optimum capacity due to heavy siltation and reduced flow of water. This has been corroborated by official data obtained through RTI. Some of the reasons for the excessive siltation are the large scale felling of trees for the projects mentioned earlier and blasting to make the tunnels and roads which also lead to landslides and weakening of the mountainous structure. The large scale dumping of soil into the river is being carried out in the ongoing Loharinag Pala Project. The unfortunate reality is that the efficacy of Hydel projects has never been truly evaluated in terms of the enormous damage that they wreak on the environment and people versus the supposed development that they are expected to bring. It is a documented fact that even though total Hydel power capacity is increasing as a result of new projects the actual electricity generated is reducing. In 2008-2009 there is a 10% increase in installed capacity as compared to 2006-2007, whereas the power generated has declined. The total installed Hydro capacity in 2006-2007 was 34476 MW whereas the power generation was 113359 million units. In 2008-2009 though the total installed capacity increased by 3584 MW to 38060 MW but the actual power generation decreased to 113081 million units. While discussing the issue, halting environmental damage to the river is paramount but the preservation of the Ganga as a piece of our collective cultural heritage is also equally important. I would like to quote Swami Vivekananda “The Gita and the sacred waters of the Ganga constitute the Hinduism of the Hindus”. But it is extremely important to understand that the issue is not just about our cultural integrity, but more importantly about the environment and the conservation of a river that is a symbol of India and above all the sole livelihood of thousands of our people.

References:

www.americanchronicle.com/articles/65800

www.theseoultimes.com/ST/db/read.php?idx=6795 -

www.petitiononline.com/bgc00001/petition.html

icela.org/index.html