In an endeavor to prepare framework for developing Ganga River Basin Environment Management Plan (GRB EMP), the Consortia of 7 IITs are engaged in wide ranging consultations with various stakeholders. The consensus appears to be that the plan should be consistent with the premise that river Ganga (i) is lively, holy and unique amongst all rivers of India, if not of the world; (ii) is to be viewed as World’s Natural Heritage*; and (iii) must flow uninterruptedly from her source to destination, and sustain all natural and indigenous living forms and systems. The overarching objective of the GRB EMP is the restoration of wholesomeness of rivers in the Ganga basin while ensuring appropriate management of water, sediments and energy (both demand and supply) to accommodate the pressures of increased population, urbanization, industrialization and agriculture. Restoring wholesomeness of rivers means ensuring the sanctity of the fundamental aspects of the river system as imbibed in the following “Panch Sutras”: 1. Continuous flow (;t|¬=| ·||¬|), 2. Un‐polluted flow (t-|=|=| ·||¬|), 3. Longitudinal, lateral and vertical connectivity of the river system, 4. Adequate space for various river functions, and 5. River as an ecological entity. With this background, following four broad objectives in context of the preparation of GRB EMP may be set: Environmental Flows to be maintained in all minor and major tributaries and main stem of the river Ganga. All anthropogenic activities must ensure maintenance of river bed and river water quality to suit ecological and socio‐cultural functions. Utilize excess water (available runoff from rainfall and snowmelt over and above environmental flows) judiciously, equitably and effectively for sustainable development. All human activities/interventions, whether existing, being implemented, and/or proposed in the Ganga Basin to be planned and modified appropriately in a transparent manner i.e. undertake any activity/intervention only after achieving broad consensus (from conception through implementation and operation) amongst all stakeholders. From the Coordinator’s Desk Grbmpvaataa- GBPIIT Bulletin A Quarterly Newsletter of the Consortia of 7 IITs for Communicating Various Aspects of Ganga River Basin Environment Management Plan GBP/IIT/QNL/56 November 4, 2011 * Seven of the Ten Criteria of the UNESCO’s Revised Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention (2005) considered to be met by the river Ganga: 1. to exhibit an important interchange of human values, over a span of time or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town‐planning or landscape design; 2. to bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared; 3. to be an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land‐use, or sea‐use which is representative of a culture (or cultures), or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change; 4. to contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance; 5. to be outstanding examples representing major stages of earth's history, including the record of life, significant on‐going geological processes in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features; 6. to be outstanding examples representing significant on‐going ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, fresh water, coastal and marine ecosystems and communities of plants and animals; 7. to contain the most important and significant natural habitats for in‐situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science or conservation. 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The mai vailable in p us of the ac nister of Sta been referr B EMP has re ngapedia.in) t interfaces kers associat secondary nd performa n for estima ta generated rainfall distr STPs and ET working pass management Ganga River Class I Town eatment, and e Studies and es ies in Class der and Prof or the study. in reason fo public doma ctivities of W ate (Indepen red as the G ecently laun to provide s for simula ed with the data relate ance of sew ation of pollu d from this g ribution ove TPs in India, ionately tow t regime thro r Basin. The ns in Ganga R d Reuse (Sew d Experience I and II Tow fessor, IIT Ka The SWAT, r selecting t ain. 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Data gen ment of the g the ‘river s of the Ganga n of the Gan the River Sty the main ste ver style fra n the Ganga in. eeting at ISI, K 3 rd August, 201 k Dam site in J GM group me th October, 201 ata issues a n all IITs are ed. deling work i taken up to ctance of riv information ution) is bein eing obtaine hat will be u es detailed g and characte nerated from Ganga Rive space’ and D a River. Two nga River an yle different m, the geom amework for a basin. This Kolkata 11) JNU Campus eeting 11) are causing e eagerly wa s concerned o start with. ver bed, aqu are being ac ng used to g ed through th updated with auge dischar As erizing the G m this group r. Till now, Delineation of o group mee nd to define tiation will fu morphic map r the tributar will help to FGM delay in p aiting for th , model set The inform uifer parame cquired and p generate cro he primary s h the more rge data that hvin K Gosai Ganga River a will form an the group h f Valley Mar etings cum w e templates urther be use pping of majo ries as well. better unde FGM group (12 th – M group mem Rajiv Sinha, progress for e data to b up for Cham ation and in eters (thickn put in place. ss sections o urvey. These refined dat t is still await in, Group Le and her majo n important c has prepare rgin and Geo workshops w for the majo ed to assess or tributaries The group i erstand the r meeting at JN – 14 th October bers at field s , Group Lead hydrologica ecome avail mbal river bas nput data su ess, bottom of streams in e data are be a once mad ted. eader and Pr or tributaries component ed two repo morphic Ma were held re or attributes the geomor s is also near s also involv river dynami NU, New Delhi r, 2011) site for river su der and Profe al and hydr lable so that sin, a tributa uch as horizo elevation, e n the absenc eing used to de available. rofessor, IIT D s for geomo in developin rts titled, A pping of Cha cently to fin s of River St phic conditio r completion ved in compu ics and sedim i urvey fessor, IIT Ka raulic t the ary of ontal etc.), ce of start The Delhi rphic ng an Active annel nalize tyles. on of n and uting ment anpur Ecology and Biodiversity (ENB): A one day workshop was held on August 6, 2011 at IIT, Kanpur. Presentations were made on “Floral and Faunal Diversity of Upper Ganga Segment, Middle Ganga Segment and Lower Ganga Segment”. A preliminary note on Fish and Fisheries was also circulated. A brief presentation on “ Higher vertebrates in Ganga river was made by WWF, New Delhi and Microbial Diversity in Ganga river by IIT K and IIT R. Workshop recommendations are given elsewhere in this newsletter. A meeting of team members of IITK and IITR was held to review the progress of primary data collection on Microbial Diversity and suggest measures for future sampling and differentiation at IITK on September 3, 2011. To review the progress of ENB and EQP group a meeting was held on October 8, 2011 at IITR. It was decided that in addition to work at hand the following will also be done by IITR: Collation of information on Macro invertebrates in Ganga River and Riparian vegetation in Ganga River basin. The group has prepared following two reports so far: Floral and Faunal Diversity of Upper Ganga Floral and Faunal Diversity of Middle Ganga The tentative titles of the reports under preparation are as follows: Floral and Faunal Diversity of Lower Ganga (Part I and II) Varanasi to Farakka and Farakka to Ganga Sagar Higher Vertebrates in Ganga River Preliminary report on Microbial Diversity in Ganga River. R P Mathur, Group Leader and Advisor, GRB EMP Project, IIT Kanpur Socio‐Economic and Socio‐Cultural (SEC): The SEC group in the first phase concentrated on collating information related to agriculture and livelihood in the Ganga Basin and has prepared following reports: Trends in Agriculture and Agriculture Practices in Ganga Basin: An Overview Trends in Agriculture and Agriculture Practices in Upper Ganga Basin (Uttarakhand ) Trends in Agriculture and Agriculture Practices in Middle Ganga Basin (Uttar Pradesh) Trends in Agriculture and Agriculture Practices in Lower Ganga Basin (Bihar) Trends in Agriculture and Agriculture Practices in Lower Ganga Basin (West Bengal) Livelihood Aspects of the Ganga River Basin The group organized a workshop at IIT Delhi during June 13‐14, 2011 to deliberate on preparation of next set of reports, develop methodology and contents, and identify the data sources for the reports. The group is now involved in (i) preparing status reports on urbanization and industrialization, (ii) demographic and socio‐economic analysis, (iii) mapping of cultural and religious activities, and (iv) developing methodology for water accounting. S P Singh, Group Leader and Professor, IIT Roorkee Policy, Law and Governance (PLG): The problems in the Ganga River Basin is the result of a diverse set of complex and interlinked factors, from the interaction and intervention of technological, socio‐cultural, political, and institutional factors. As a background, a detailed analysis of the earlier efforts to improve the river water quality through the GAP I and II was undertaken. One of the reports prepared along with EQP group presents an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of the GAP and consolidates the available knowledge and insights in order to understand nuances and complexity involved in design, implementation, monitoring and regulation aspects of the GAP. The PLG group started working on two issues related to the major objectives (;t|¬=| ·||¬| and t-|=|=| ·||¬| ) of GRB EMP: urban sanitation issues in Uttar Pradesh and environmental clearance of large dams in Uttarakhand. Studies on Urban Sanitation: Two reports pertaining to urban sanitation issues have been prepared. The first one provides a conceptual framework for the studies of PLG group. It attempts to articulate a systematic, comprehensive, conceptually sound, and internally consistent perspective—and an analytical framework based on it—that is focused on issues of policies and governance. A conceptual schema—called as the ‘Governance Grid’—a comprehensive and conceptually coherent schema of the actual process of governance as it generally unfolds in reality is presented. The schema begins with the ground‐level problems in any sector and helps identify the core governance maladies of different types in the sector. To address these maladies, appropriate changes in—or creation of new—policy instruments and/ or governing agencies is then suggested. The major argument is that core governance maladies cannot be cured by technical, financial, or managerial ‘fixes’. It also makes a note that all governance problems cannot be addressed using the policy and institutional ‘fixes’ either, as they cannot resolve such problems rooted in the ‘political bottom‐line’. In other words, the problems rooted in the adverse balance of political‐economic powers acting against the goals set for the governance of the sector can be resolved only through political action by the sections of society supporting the goals set for governance. Based on this, a related report presents an analysis of the ground‐level situation of the sewage conveyance and treatment systems in the Kanpur city in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The objective is to bring out important policy and governance related lacunas in the sector, causing continued release of partially treated or untreated sewage and faecal‐matter in the river Ganga. This report broadly follows the template presented in the first report of the group and provides background information on Kanpur with the focus on the activities of the Ganga Action Plan (Phase I and II) in the city. The findings focus on different deficiencies in the performance of the sewage system in the city of Kanpur. Further, it presents the review and analysis of various major Policy Instruments (PIs), the in‐depth analysis of the lacunas in the Governing Agencies (GAs) and provides a set of recommendations with a three‐pronged strategy. Studies on Environmental Clearance of Hydro Power Projects: Hydropower development as an activity, involves many stakeholders ranging from the state to the people and from commercial developers to the environmentalists, and their differential and often contradictory perspectives and interests. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environmental Clearance (EC) for the government is a management tool that can show a pathway to achieve developmental goals without compromising environmental protection objective; for developers it is an essential procedural requirement to initiate project activities and for environmental activists and project affected people the only way to safeguard their interests. The first report pertaining to this aspect has systematically mapped the institutional structure for environmental governance in India and especially highlights the critical perspectives from the civil society angle. It has brought out the misalignment of goals and expectations from the EIA‐EC process that leads to violations of policies, bringing out the limitations of the existing institutional frameworks, procedures and implementation. The second report analyzes one important step in EC ‐the Public Hearing and Consultation (PC) process‐ which is mandatory for hydropower projects to ensure transparency, accountability and participation. It is an important vehicle in democratic environmental decision making by developing an arena where the views and suggestions of public are incorporated. Eight case studies of projects sampled for both the main tributaries of River Ganga (Bhagirathi and Alaknanda) were undertaken to understand the issues that illustrated the lacunas in the present PC process. Both reports provide a set of recommendations meant to be widely debated by all stakeholders to arrive at consensus solutions to this major issue threatening ;t|¬=| ·||¬| of the river. Studies on Legal Aspects: The reports dealing with legal aspects analyze the legislations at the central and state levels, with specific reference to the portion of the state of West Bengal in Ganga River Basin. It is noted that these legislations have been enacted with different objectives and at different times, and have created provisions regarding the prevention and conservation of river resources. The processes like irrigation, preservation and distribution of the waters, issues of sanitation, water pollution, etc. have been addressed under these acts. All relevant acts, notifications, have been described and briefly discussed providing a preliminary analysis. N C Narayanan, Group Leader and Associate Professor, IIT Bombay Geo‐spatial Database Management (GDM): Under the Ganga River Basin Environment Management Plan (GRB EMP), different thematic groups have been identified that work together for achieving the goals of the project. A key component that binds all the groups together is the Geo‐spatial Database Management (GDM) group. This group is responsible for handling the data needs of all the other groups, and is therefore, central to the entire project. The main task of the group is to set up a data repository that stores and manages all information produced and used by scientists and researchers linked with the project. A geo‐spatial database server running at the backend provides much of the capabilities including data upload/download facilities, security, access control rights, querying and visualization. A GIS frontend has been created that allows different map layers to be overlaid, visualized, and downloaded. A new portal, http://www.gangalaya.in/, has been registered that serves as the entry point to the database. Facilities have also been put in place for common users to browse and download certain data. Harish Karnick, Group Leader and Professor, IIT Kanpur "Environmental Flows are a regime of flow in a river or stream that describes the temporal and spatial variation in quantity and quality of water required for freshwater as well as estuarine systems to perform their natural ecological functions (including sediment transport) and support the spiritual, cultural and livelihood activities that depend on these ecosystems" Communication (COM): To achieve the goal of communication, mass awareness and information dissemination amongst the people, a websites namely, Gangapedia was launched. The English version of Gangapedia (GP) website (http://www.gangapedia.in) was first launched in July 2010, as the common public platform for public at large to interact, express, share and discuss their views and opinions. Though the quantum of data on the river system is voluminous, there are numerous lacunae in the information that still needs to be plugged. The repository of data and information should be such which is easily accessible and understandable by anyone. The group has come up with Cmaps which are pictorial representations easy to comprehend at a quick glance by anyone. The immense amount of data generated by many institutions and organizations is being visualized in the form of these knowledge based models. They form a very powerful visualization tool when it comes to comparing and understanding various aspects of the Ganga basin at a quick glance. For the community not so well versed with the English language, the need to have a Hindi version of the GP website was felt. The communication group has been able to co‐create contents in Hindi on the ‘read and write’ GP website. It is hoped that the numerous organizations involved in different aspects of Ganga river studies will also be assisted by such efforts. T V Prabhakar, Group Leader and Professor, IIT Kanpur Environmental Flows (EFL): The Environmental Flows or E‐Flows group has prepared state‐of‐the‐art report on E‐Flows in reference to the rivers of the Ganga Basin. After considerable debate within and outside the group following definition for E‐flows has been adopted. The group has decided to use Building Block Methodology (BBM), as this was successfully piloted through the Living Ganga Programme of WWF‐India in which many Faculty members from different IITs participated. The group has benefitted from the experiences and learning of that exercise. After several rounds of discussions with SEC, ENB, FGM and WRM groups, about three sites downstream of each of the important river confluences on Alaknanda/Mandakini (namely Vishnu Prayag, Karn Prayag, and Rudra Prayag), 16 sites from Gangotri to Farraka, and three sites on river Hugli have been identified for E‐Flows assessment. The IIT team has also taken up the survey work to get reliable data on cross‐sections at each of these sites. Although the socio‐cultural surveys and field visits are about to begin, the group is awaiting the hydrology data for the river Ganga from the Government of India. It is essential to have long‐term (at least for continuous 30 years) flow data for a river system for assessment of E‐Flows. Nitin Kaushal, Convener and Senior Manager‐Water Resources at WWF India 001_GBP_IIT_GEN_DAT_01_Ver 1_Dec 2010: River Ganga at a Glance: Identification of Issues and Priority Actions for Restoration 002_GBP_IIT_EQP_S&R_01_Ver 1_Dec 2010: Guidelines for the Preparation of Urban River Management Plan (URMP) for all Class I Towns in Ganga River Basin 003_GBP_IIT_EQP_S&R_02_Ver 1_Dec 2010: Sewage Treatment in Class I Towns: Recommendations and Guidelines 004_GBP_IIT_EQP_S&R_03_Ver 1_Dec 2010: Guidelines for Implementation of Sewage Collection, Diversion, Pumping, Treatment, and Reuse (Sewage CDPTR) Infrastructure in Class I Towns 005_GBP_IIT_FGM_DAT_01_Ver 1_Dec 2010: Active Floodplain Mapping: Defining the “River Space” First Set of Reports Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat (SWOT) Analysis of Ganga Action Plan The major strengths of GAP include strategizing of interception and diversion of nalas, creation of institutional structure, basis for future tariff policies design and funding responsibilities of the ULBs and the state governments with respect to Ganga, peer review and monitoring of GAP through various stakeholders, appointment of independent agencies for water quality monitoring, improvements in river water quality, creation of knowledge base and awareness building. The major weakness of GAP remains in limited scope of issues addressed neglecting non‐point sources of pollution, fixing of inadequate water quality standards blindly following the western countries, improper collection of sewage, over‐designed STPs, influence of aid on inappropriate sewage treatment technology like UASB, irregular maintenance by ULBs, unclear and unviable financial models and improper management of industrial wastes. The opportunities of GAP lie on learning experience of sewage treatment technology for employing new technology, adoption of river basin approach, Govt.’s commitment to raise adequate funds and awareness and inclination of civil society contribution. The threats and challenges of GAP include divergence of River Action Plans (RAPs) with broader development policies, influence of bilateral and multilateral funding on policy matters, wastage of funds and challenges in experimenting with regulatory authorities. Wastewater Reuse Projects Worldwide: Collation of Selected International Case Studies and Experiences Inclusions of highly treated wastewater reuse alternatives in demand driven river basin management plan like GRB EMP In context of integrated urban water management, promotion of zero discharge municipality/city adopting reuse of tertiary‐treated wastewater in the Ganga Basin Groundwater recharge through seasonal storage in surface reservoirs and irrigation with highly reclaimed water in the Ganga Basin Awareness on potential benefits and research on plausible health impacts of wastewater reuse Floral and Faunal Diversity in Upper Ganga Segment: Gangotri – Haridwar (Upstream Bhimgoda Barrage) The differences in aquatic biodiversity, both floral and faunal (viz. phytoplankton, periphyton, zoobenthos, zooplanktons and consumers including fish population) in three different stretches, namely Gangotri to Gangani, Gangani to Devprayag, and Devprayag to Haridwar of the Upper Ganga segment are being characterized. Delineation of Valley Margin and Geomorphic Mapping of Channel Belt and Active Floodplain of the Ganga River Significant diversity in terms of valley width and geomorphic features in different reaches of the Ganga river provide important input for E‐Flows assessment in relation to hydrological regime. Stretches with wide valleys and active floodplains are potential sites for creating artificial recharge. Channel‐belt and floodplain features provide valuable insights to the possible habitats for aquatic and land biota. Mapping of Policy Instruments and Governance Agencies for Environmental Clearance of Hydropower Projects in Upper Ganga Segment Mandatory pre‐environmental clearance for mini and small scale hydropower projects based on EIA studies conducted by the independent and competent technical authority and financed by MoEF‐recognized consortium of developers. Transparent and accountable decision making process through public proceedings of various stakeholders on the EIA study findings. Assessment of Public Consultation Process for Environmental Clearance of Hydropower Projects in Upper Ganga Segment Restructure Public Consultation process with more public participation and strengthen EC process in environmental decision making for expediting the project clearance and implementation, avoiding financial losses due to public protests and making the process more transparent and accountable. Environmental Flows: State‐of‐the‐Art with Special Reference to Rivers in the Ganga River Basin E‐flows assessment is critical in the context of integrated river basin approach such as GRB EMP. The Building Block Methodology (BBM), a flexible and robust method, is highly suitable for E‐Flows assessment for rivers like the Ganga having diverse socio‐cultural and livelihood aspects. Highlights of Some of the Second Set of Draft Reports Live Eme An O The prod Utta repo Pulp Map M lihood Aspe Status o states, v erging Conta The pre environm Constan compreh Overview of Increase improve Decline Increase status of ductivity) an arakhand, Ut orts. p and Paper Shifting tertiary model h help ma pping of Rele In order the port processe have be Meeting Room, I All the Madhav of Wate were of the cons decided has con stipulate ajor Event cts of the Ga of the livelih viz. Uttara Kh minants in G esence of e mental medi nt monitoring hensive risk Trends in Ag ed crop outp ed irrigation f in agricultur e in use of fe agriculture nd its implic ttar Pradesh, Industries in towards zer treatment f have been re intain “;t|¬ evant Legisla r to conserve tion of the s es like irrigat en reviewed g of the Pro IT Delhi. Pro three exper v A Chitale w er Resources the opinion straint of ava that IITs wil straints in p ed time perio ts anga River B oods in the hand, Uttar P Ganga River merging co ia and fish tis g and analys assessment. griculture an put during la facilities. ral area due t rtilizers and (i.e. land‐u cations with , Bihar and W n Ganga Basi ro liquid disc followed by ecommende ¬=| ·||¬| and t- ations Applic e river resour state of the tion, preserv d. oject Manage ofessor Deva rt members, were present , Directors o n that it is un ailability of d ll continue th providing ad od. Basin: Overvi whole Gang Pradesh and Basin with S ntaminants ssues in the sis of widely nd Agricultu ast four dec to growing in modern agr se, croppin h specific re West Bengal in: Achieving charge parad RO techno d for pulp a -|=|=| ·||¬|”. cable to the rces, the leg West Benga vation and di ement Boar ang Khakhar, , Swami Avi apart from of IITs and P nrealistic to data/informa he project fo dditional fina iew and Map ga river basin Bihar in the Special Emph especially p Ganga river y used pestic re Practices cades with i ndustrializat icultural equ g pattern, eference to for preparat g Zero Liquid digm (i.e. rec logy and ad nd paper in West Benga islations at t al in the Gan istribution o d (PMB): Fir , Chairman, imukteshwa representati rofessor Vin address all i ation and the or much long ancial suppo pping of Tou n and touris basin are an hasis on Pes pesticides (D basin are rev cides in vari ntensive cul ion and urba uipments. irrigation st the portion tion of GRB E d Discharge cycling and dopting Desi dustries in t al Portion of he central a nga River Ba f the water, rst PMB mee PMB and Di ranand Sara ves of Minis nod Tare, Co ssues within e variety of i ger time requ ort and exte urism on Ma sm‐related liv nalyzed. ticides DDT and HC viewed. ous environ ltivation and anization. tatus, use o n of the Ga EMP has bee reuse of tre gn, Build, F the Ganga R the Ganga R nd state leve asin (GRB) fo issues of san eting was he rector, IIT B aswati, Dr B stry of Enviro ordinator, T n the stipulat issues that n uesting supp ending the p in Stem of R velihoods es CH mainly) mental med d crop diver of fertilizers anga Basin en presented ated wastew inance and iver Basin to River Basin els, with spe or various in nitation, wat eld on July 7 Bombay chair Bharat Jhunj onment and Team GRB EM ted time of need to be co port from MH project dura River Ganga specially in t level in va dia suggested sification du s, practices in states of d in four sepa water) emplo Operate (D o save rivers cific referen nfrastructure ter pollution, 7, 2011 at B red the mee hunwala an Forests, Min MP. All mem 18 months g onsidered. It HRD, if the M tion beyond three rious d for ue to and f the arate oying BFO) s and ce to e and , etc. Board eting. d Dr nistry mbers given t was MoEF d the Mark of meeting includin Professo of MoA. the mee Environm Reports various consider action b Third PI Team G content Bose, Gr May 18, that IIT consider ministrie Third W The wor D Joshi, various Team GR In the Br Gan refe For and Bas var pos atte It is wel Link esta Inte qua form indi etc. In s for f Completion g was held g Professor D or Vinod Tare . The First N eting, the Ho ment Manag and stated stakeholder red opinion y the ministr CC Meeting, GRB EMP. Th ious issues r roup Leader, , 2011 and Ju reports sh ration to t es. EQP Grou orkshop of E rkshop was a Dr R S Amb IITs (Kanpur RB EMP and rain Stormin nga river ec erence condi ecological r d some repre sed on the s ious stretch ssible, can b empted for t s important t ll flourishing kages betwe ablished bas erventions m ality/pollutio m of barrag icator specie .). These will some cases d breeding ind n of One Yea with Shri Ja Devang Khak e, Coordinat ewsletter (V on’ble Minis gement Plan that the d rs. The Hon and suggeste ry. , July 26, 201 he Thematic related to th , EQP presen uly 7, 2011, hould reflect he commen up was autho ENB Group: attended by hast, Dr Pra r, Roorkee, Professor R g Session fo osystem, as ition as not m restoration in esentative w scattered his es on main be used to the riparian f to consider d of indicator een biotic ( ed on inform may mostly b on preventio ges/dams to es, maintena l be suggeste direct biotic digenous spe ar Since Sign airam Rame khar, Directo tor, GRBEMP Vol 1‐4) prep ster suggeste (GRB EMP) raft reports n’ble Minist ed that the F 11, IIT Delhi c Group lea he First Set nted detailed with the min t the consid nts received orized to rev The third wo the invited e kash Nautiya Guwahati, K P Mathur, G llowing thing s of now, is much histori n the Ganga etlands may storical infor n stem and set target flora and fau desired river species. (mostly of mation availa be required n, reducing o ensure sm ance of ecol ed by the oth intervention ecies. It is no ning of Mem esh, Hon’ble or, IIT Bomba P Project at N ared by the ed that the . Project Coo s have been er stated t First Set of R : The meetin ders and in of Reports w d account of nistry. After dered opinio d from var vize its report orkshop of E experts in th al, and Dr Na Kharagpur) a Group Leader gs emerged t by and lar cal informat River Basin y be consider rmation and important environmen una. r conditions identified in able in literat to improve water abstra mooth movem ogical flows her thematic ns may also ot desirable t morandum o e Minister, M ay, Professor New Delhi on IIT Team wa project title ordinator pr n revised co hat IITs sho Reports shou ng was chaire stitute repr were discuss f various me considerabl on of the c ious individ ts included i ENB Group w he field, Dr R aveen Ambh and WWF‐In r, ENB coord through cons ge an altere tion is availab , main stem red as repres expert opin tributaries, t managem (channel as ndicator spe ture and con the abiotic actions, avo ment (both and substra c groups, nam be required o introduce f Agreemen MoEF and r r Sanjay Dha n July 7, 2011 as presented e may be mo esented the nsidering th ould give re ld be submit ed by Profes esentatives sed in the m etings, parti e discussion concerned T duals/groups n the First Se was held on A K Sinha, Dr hast besides ndia. Profess dinated the p sensus: ed eco‐syste ble. of the river sentative of t nion indicato along with ent class. S well as activ ecies) and a nsultation wi components iding or pro upstream a ate condition mely EQP, W . These wou exotic specie t between I representativ nde, Directo 1 to mark on d to the Hon odified as G highlights o he comment ecommenda tted shortly ssor Vinod Ta attended th meeting. Pro cularly the m s PICC unan Thematic G s/governmen et of Reports August 6, 20 R C Trivedi, members of sor Vinod Ta proceedings em. It is diff r, some impo the basin. or flora and desired den Similar exerc ve flood plai abiotic com th experts. s (e.g. maint per design o and downst ns for surviv WRM, FGM an uld be in the es. ITs and MOE ves of IIT T or, IIT Kanpur ne year of sig n’ble Ministe anga River B of the First S ts received tions with for the follow are, Coordin he meeting. ofessor Purne meetings hel imously reso roups after nt departme s. 011 at IIT Kan Dr K K Vass, f Team ENB are, Coordin of the works ficult to set ortant tribut fauna speci nsities wher cise can also n) for surviv ponents can tenance of w of barriers in ream) of cr val and bree nd PLG. form of sup EF: A Team r and gning r. In Basin et of from their w up ator, The endu ld on olved due ents/ npur. Dr K from ator, shop. t any aries es in rever o be val as n be water n the ritical ding, pport Bio‐monitoring should be emphasized. A report can be prepared on bio‐monitoring. Saprobity Index, P/R ratio, diversity level could be included in bio‐monitoring. Average fish catch during 1950‐1980 could be set as target on the main stem of the river. Some of the other targets could be (i) appearance of Dolphins with some suggested sighting frequency in the main stem of the river from Bijnor to Farakka, and Yamuna up to Delhi, (ii) Indian major carps in specified stretches, (iii) native and sensitive species of Plecoptera, Ephemeroptera/Trichoptera, (iv) ratio of Bacillariophyceae/Cholorophyceae and Cyanophyceae, etc. Review Meeting with Secretary, MoEF: A meeting to review the preparation of the Ganga River Basin Environment Management Plan (GRB EMP) was held on September 14, 2011 at Paryavaran Bhawan, New Delhi under the chairmanship of Shri T Chatterjee, Secretary, MoEF. The meeting was attended by Professor Devang Khakhar, Chairman, PMB and Director, IIT Bombay; Professor Sanjay G Dhande, Director, IIT Kanpur; Professor Gautam Barua, Director, IIT Guwahati, Professor Vinod Tare, Coordinator, Team GRB EMP and Dr Geneviece Connors, Water Specialist, World Bank besides the representatives of MoEF including Ms Mira Mehrishi, Additional Secretary, MoEF. Being the Chairman of PMB, Professor Khakhar handed over a set of first five reports relating to the GRB EMP, prepared by the IIT consortium, to the Secretary, MoEF. It was informed to the Secretary, MoEF that the first set of reports were prepared in December 2010 and have been widely circulated and discussed at various forums including the Standing Committee constituted by MoEF for this purpose, consultative workshop with the NGRBA expert members and PMB of the IIT consortium. In the meeting, Professor Tare informed that a special task group for environmental flows (E‐ Flows) has been constituted. IIT consortium raised its concerns in the meeting over the data availability. It was informed that much of the data of the river flow is yet to be received from the government. Further, most of the data received from the CWC is in hardcopy, which will take many months to convert into digital form. Digital soil data of the river basin has also not been received from National Bureau of Soil Survey & Land Use Planning, Nagpur. Moreover, IIT consortium is carrying out the exercise of sectional survey of the river, while the information is already available with the CWC. In this context, Professor Dhande requested the Secretary, MoEF to take up the matter at his level to provide these data. The Secretary, MoEF assured the IIT consortium that all efforts will be made to address the issues relating to the supply of data for preparation of E‐Flows report under the GRB EMP. Consultative Workshop of PLG Group: The PLG Thematic Group organized a Consultative Workshop on October 15‐16, 2011 at Rajiv Gandhi School of Intellectual Property Law, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. The Consultative Workshop was organized with the objective of examining the need and framework of comprehensive legislation on River Basin Management. The organizers invited experts from several sectors representing views from respective areas. Amongst participants, lawyers, activists, environmentalists, engineers, academics and researchers were invited to present their views on River Basin Management Plan. To name a few, Mr Ramaswamy Iyer, Ms Ram Rauta, Professor M K Ramesh, Mr Videh Upadhaya, Mr Panjwani, Mr Parityosh Tygi and Mr G N Kathpalia were distinguished speakers in the Workshop. From IITs, Dr Vinod Tare (IIT Kanpur), Dr Shyam Asholekar (IIT Bombay), Dr N C Narayan (IIT Bombay), Dr D J Sen (IIT Kharagpur) were present. The Workshop was inaugurated by Professor Majumdar, Deputy Director, IIT Kharagpur. The Workshop witnessed deliberations on issues of Need for Legislative and Regulatory framework on River Ganga, Prevention, Conservation and Development of River Ganga, River Basin Management and Implementation Agencies and Adjudication and Dispute Settlement Mechanism. The Workshop was coordinated by Dr Indrajit Dube along with Dr Dipa Dube and Dr Uday Shankar. All participants supported the resolution that a comprehensive National Ganga River Basin Act is necessary and IIT Team should take the lead based on deliberations of the workshop. IIT Internat An inter and was Septemb sewage delegate Singapo coopera projects PPP mod CEO of E worksho collabor gigantic local co internat establish 14th Int Manage IITs for Manage T Bombay First N IITs a FGM tional Works rnational wo ste manage ber 22–23, and industr es represent re, etc. shar ation on adva s pertaining t del have bee ETI Dynamic op and great rating with th task of resto oordinator. E tional Ganga hing one. ternational ement Progra Preparation ement Plan’ a IIT Delhi National Stu at IIT Kanpur Thematic Gr shop on ‘PPP orkshop on t ment was h 2011 to exp ial effluents ting about 12 red internat anced techno to managem en proposed s, a UK base tly facilitated he IIT Conso oring the hea ETI Dynamic River knowl River Sympo amme, Depa n of GRB EM at the 14th In IIT M udents’ Conf r: November roup Meetin P Models an the public‐p held at Vishw plore state‐o in India, in 2 countries ional experi ological app ment of sewa d as part of t ed economic d participati rtia to facilit alth of rivers cs is also sp ledge centre osium, Brisb artment of C MP was invit nternational Mail Madras Fort ference on R 4–5, 2011 ng at Patna U d Technolog rivate‐partne wakarma Bh of‐the‐art te general, and including Ita ences and e lications cou age and indu the preparat c developme ion of intern ate interacti s in the Gang pearheading es with Unive bane: Dr Vin Civil Engineer ted to delive River Sympo us your valua IIT Kanpur thcoming Ev River Basin P University: D gical Solution ership (PPP) hawan, India chnological d the Ganga aly, France, G explored the upled with PP ustrial efflue tion of GRB nt focused e national dele ion with man ga Basin. Pro the setting ersity of Sout nod Tare, Pr ring, IIT Kan er a talk on osium, Brisb able feedbacks IIT Guw vents Planning (BR December 22 ns for Sewag and techno an Institute solutions co a River Basin Germany, UK e possibilitie PP solutions ent employin EMP at the enterprise, s egates in the ny countries ofessor Muke g up of inte thampton (U ofessor, Env pur and Coo ‘Preparing ane, Austral Subrata Rakesh R Sha Shivam K s and suggest wahati RiP‐2011) Or 2–23, 2011 ge and Wast ological solut of Technolo oupled with n in particula K, Israel, Aus es of bilatera at the works ng Zero Liqu workshop. M erved as Co e workshop. interested i esh Khare, IIT ernational fo UK) already t vironmental ordinator, Co the First Ga ia: Septembe Vinod Tare a Hait; subrat h Mishra; rmi Rasmi Sanghi; Tripti Singh; ashikant Pate Kapoor; shiva tions at ganga IIT Roorkee rganized by C te Managem tions for sew ogy Delhi du PPP model ar. More tha stralia, Denm al or multila shop. Five m id Discharge Mr Sanmit A ‐organiser o ETI Dynam n participatio T Delhi serve ocus groups taking the le Engineering onsortia of S anga River B er 26‐29, 20 e; vinod@iitk. ta.hait@gmai ishraz@yahoo rsanghi@iitk triptis@gmai l; spatel@iitk amkpr@yahoo apedia@gmai IIT Kharag Attributio Consortia of ent’: wage uring s for an 30 mark, ateral model e and huja, f the ics is on in ed as and ad in g and even Basin 11. ac.in; l.com o.com k.ac.in il.com k.ac.in o.com il.com pur ons f 7