GANGA – OUR NATIONAL RIVER With emphasis on the stretch of river between Gangotri and Uttarkashi.

The Ganga is a living symbol of Indian civilization, a rich heritage and tradition handed down from the far away past of our rishis and even today a vital and indispensable part of the Indian life right from birth to death. Hence whilst we welcome the decision of the Prime Minister to declare her our National River we would like to state that this should not fossilize into a mere label, but must be followed up with uncompromising actions on the ground to maintain her flow in her original majesty, purity and path.

Being residents of Uttarkashi district where we have 100 kms of the Ganga flowing from Gangotri to Uttarkashi, and have been involved since the last 3 years with issues concerning the Ganga in this valley these suggestions pertain mainly to this section of the river – 1 The stretch of the Ganga from her origin in Gaumukh, reaching Gangotri and finally to

Uttarkashi is perhaps the most important stretch of the river as it is the region of her origin and hence any tampering of the water quality here will affect the entire river all the way to the ocean. Further it would also be the area of the purest Ganga Water as it is closest to the source. Hence in this region especially and elsewhere there must be no compromises made in the name of ‘development’ through dams, hydro projects etc.

2 From Gangotri to Uttarkashi the govt. has proposed and built several hydro-projects as follows in consecutive order starting barely 14 kms. from Gangotri – 1. Bhairon Ghati 1 and 2 - temporarily suspended 2. Loharinag – Pala – under construction 3. Pala - Maneri – temporarily suspended 4. Maneri Bhali 1 – constructed in the 1960’s 5. Maneri Bhali 2 – finished in 2008

3 Since these projects are consecutive it entails diverting the Ganga through tunnels

CONTINUOUSLY from Bhairon Ghati, just 14 kms from Gangotri – right upto Uttarkashi. Thus causing the river to disappear in the valley of her origin.

4 The last project of Maneri Bhali 2 joins up to Tehri dam. Thus from Gangotri to Rishikesh in fact we have no Ganga!!

5 This situation is entirely unacceptable as not only should the National River flow, but the

diversion of the river into tunnels directly denies the rights of millions of Indians to worship along her banks, have darshan of her and bathe in her waters.

6 Further the tunneling of this water for such long stretches in tunnels with a loss of flora, fauna, natural river-bed and minerals is bound to alter and negatively affect her original qualities and the especially prized quality of ‘Ganga-jal’ which is known not to putrefy and to self-purify itself. Any change so close to the source is bound to affect the entire length of the river.

7 Furthermore the Gangotri valley is an extremely steep and narrow one. Any construction

done on the hill slopes causes landsliding of tons of debris directly into the Ganga. This has been clearly observed in the ongoing construction of the Loharinag-Pala project despite demarcated areas for dumping. In the demarcated areas and even all along the river dumping of muck and debris into the water is clearly visible.

8 Blasting done during construction has also been observed to shake homes, and the surrounding hills. This area comes under zone-5 having the highest possibilities of earthquakes, hence making this type of construction dangerous, destructive and unviable.

9 Water sources on which entire villages are dependent have also been adversely affected,

sometimes reducing and sometimes running completely dry. This again is adverse for the ecology and balance of the region which will then affect the Ganga herself.

10 Large scale felling of trees and construction of approach roads on the steep hillsides for

the projects has resulted in massive landslides of entire hill slopes with the debris pouring right down to and into the Ganga. This has not only disrupted local lives but the destruction of the Himalayan ecology and the turning of the Ganga into a dumping channel is a crime. Further these extremely steep slopes will never regain their original flora due to the yearly monsoons wherein landsliding will continue and even render these areas unsafe for humans.

11 The construction of any projects in Bhairon Ghati, so close to the origin of the Ganga will

indeed have a negative impact on the Gangotri glacier which is the originating glacier for the Ganga, according to glaciologists who have worked in this region. The Gangotri glacier is already one of the fastest retreating glaciers in the world with an average of 23 metres per year. Any acceleration of this retreat due to construction of dams will be unforgivable.

12 It is a well-known fact that whatever provisions may be there in the EIA’s of various

projects for reducing the impact of water pollution through sewage, affluents and other construction materials, this does in fact get dumped in the water. We have observed this during the construction of Loharinag-Pala with bull-dozers being washed in the river, workers defecating on the river banks and tons of muck and debris being dumped even surreptiously at night in the Ganga. During the construction of Maneri Bhali 2 the constructing company directly dumped tons of cement into the village Shinguni stream which entered into the Ganga a few meters down. This went on unchecked for 5 years!!! It must be noted that the EIA’s of these projects admit that the water quality is very good in this area. Hence in terms of pollution any projects are bound to increase pollution levels.

13 The pilgrimage to Gangotri is one that every Indian aspires to in his lifetime. Hence to arrive in the valley and not have the darshan ( sighting) of the river – only an ankle deep stream at most and intermittent among the rocks and boulders - all the way until one arrives at Gangotri is a shame and a violation of our constitutional rights. The river bed in the length after the built dams is indeed hardly even deep enough to wet the ankles and a full Ganga dip is impossible.

Before Maneri

bhali 1 dam

After Maneri bhali 1 dam

CONSIDERING ALL THESE ISSUES WE FEEL THAT THE FOLLOWING POLICIES AND ACTIONS ARE INDISPENSABLE FOR PRESERVING THE GANGA

1. The need to recognize that the Ganga is an invaluable and unique heritage handed down

to us from our forefathers, making it our responsibility to preserve her flow and purity and hand it down in the same undistorted, undiluted, free-flowing, natural course that is her original path without any diversions or distortions or degradation.

2. To stop completely and without any delay the Loharinag-Pala project.

3. To suspend on a permanent basis the Bharionghati 1 and 2, and Pala Maneri projects.

4. Any compromise with the ongoing project of Loharinag-Pala in terms of

Environmental flow is unacceptable as any diversion of the Ganga flow into tunnel is not acceptable. It is to be noted that the long term destructive and

polluting process of construction itself would not be reduced by suggesting that a minimum environmental flow to be left in the river is a sufficient solution.

5. To release at once atleast 50% of the water in hydro-projects already constructed from Gangotri to Rishikesh and finally in phases to decommission all existent hydro-projects on the Ganga.

6. To decommission dams that are not functioning to full capacity i.e. Maneri Bhali 1 – that is producing even less than 50% of its 90MW capacity since the last 10 years. This dam causes 13 km of the Ganga bed to remain virtually dry.

7. To maintain her original course and flow from her origin at Gaumukh to Gangasagar and to maintain the sanctity of her banks and the culture and traditions attached to it.

8. To make any diversion, obstruction or retention of her flow and pollution of her waters an offence under law.

9. To recognize and take pride in the fact that she is unique, special and the majestic living symbol of one of the most ancient civilizations on the planet and hence to let the principle of no compromise be our guiding light.

Below are the views on this Great River expressed by some of the distinguished personalities of India. The Mother as the companion of Sri Aurobindo wrote in 1950: “The future of India is very clear. India is the living soul. She incarnates the Spiritual knowledge in the world. The government of India ought to recognize this significance of India in this sphere and plan their actions accordingly…”

Swami Vivekananda on the other side of the ocean wrote: “The Gita and the sacred waters of the Ganga constitute the Hinduism of the Hindus. Last time I went to the West I also took a little with me, fearing it might be needed, and whenever opportunities occurred I used to drink a few drops of it. And every time I drank in the midst of the stream of humanity, amid that bustle of civilization, that hurry of frenzied footsteps of millions of men and women in the west, the mind at once became calm and still as it were”

Jawaharlal Nehru 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.”

Sri Shankaracharya Swaroopanand Saraswati: Joshimath, Badrinath “The Ganga flow should not be tampered with. This flow itself is the Ganga. If she doesn’t flow freely then her purity and significance is affected. That is why we don’t want her tampered with. The route by which the Ganga reaches the ocean at Ganga Sagar, that itself is the Ganga. It has the same importance like that of the first time when she followed King Bhagirath’s chariot to the ocean. Thus in the name of development, creating barriers in her free flow is inappropriate from a religious viewpoint. Also from an environmental viewpoint and from the viewpoint of the security of India, it is essential that the Ganga’s flow is maintained.”

Rajiv Gandhi, while launching the Ganga action plan had said: “When we talk of protecting the environment, it means protecting India. If environment is damaged, a piece of India dies….The purity of Ganga was never in doubt. Still the river which was keeping our spirituality intact was being allowed to be dirty.”

A study report by Priyadarshini Patel, Hemant Dhyani 1st December 2008

Ganga- Ahvaan ( Call of the Ganga )

‘Mere consumption cannot be the final goal of our ‘development’ process. Hence as a

citizen of this country I demand that the Ganga be left free and untampered in her course

from Gangotri to the plains.’