India to set up Ganga River Basin Authority to curb pollution

India has announced it will set up the National Ganga River Basin Authority (GRBA) to rid the river Ganga of pollution and other forms of degradation.
Minister of State for Environment and Forests Namo Narain Meena gave a statement, to this effect, in the parliament on Friday. The government will issue a notification, in this regard, he said.
The implementation of the GRBA is based on piecemeal basis and focused more on municipal sewage, Meena said adding that the problem is compounded from the inadequate flows of water.
He said, a comprehensive response is necessary to address the problem covering water quality and flow, sustainable access, prevention and control of pollution, security for sustenance, and energy security in the form of national mission by giving the Ganga the status of a national river.
Which is why the government has decided to give the Ganga the status of a national river by setting up the GRBA with the empowerment of planning, financing, monitoring and coordinating authority for the project under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, the minister said.
The prime minister will chair the GRBA and it will include as its members the chief ministers of the states through which the Ganga flows--Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
The GRBA may co-opt one or more chief ministers from any of the states having major tributaries of the river Ganga. It may also co-opt up to five members who are experts in the fields of river conservation, hydrology, environmental engineering, social mobilization and such other fields.
The GRBA, with a holistic approach, will address the problem of pollution in the Ganga. This will include water quality and other issues relevant to river ecology and management.
The GRBA is aimed to development river basin management plan and prevention, control and abatement of pollution in the Ganga to maintain its water quality and to take steps relevant to river ecology and management in the Ganga Basin states.