And quiet flow
In India, rivers and their tributaries flow through the hearts and minds of every
individual. They do not just carry water, but also the livelihoods, cultures, beliefs,
traditions, myths, futures, and dreams of over a billion lives. And, this is the very
reason why we need to protect them from threats like pollution, climate change, and
so on. Sreelakshmi Kannan and Mini K report on the current state of Indian rivers
and what is ailing them.
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I
n India, rivers form the lifeline of the
people. They provide innumerable
benefits—from
drinking
water,
irrigation, electricity, and transportation,
to livelihood options and tourism.
No doubt, most of the major cities in India
are located on river banks. Even the first
major civilization in India developed on the
banks of a river (Indus). Rivers also have
significant historical and mythological
importance. Today, the largest religious
gathering in the world takes place on the
banks of an Indian river—the Kumbh Mela
on the banks of river Ganga.
But, do we really know our rivers?
RIVER WISDOM
Indian rivers are classified as Himalayan,
peninsular, coastal, and inland-drainage
basin, based on their origin. There are
113 river basins, divided into ‘major basins’
(13; equal to or more than 20,000 sq km),
‘medium basins’ (45; 2000–20,000 sq km),
and ‘minor basins’ (55; less than 2000 sq km).
The rivers originate from mainly three
watersheds—Himalayan and Karakoram
ranges; Vindhya and Satpura ranges; and
Sahyadri or the Western Ghats.
The Himalayan rivers are snow-fed and
flow throughout the year, whereas the
others depend on the monsoon. While
most rivers flow into the Bay of Bengal, a
few empty into the Arabian Sea. Himalayan
rivers that flow westward into Pakistan
are the Indus, Beas, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej,
and Jhelum. River Ganga originates at the
Gangotri Glacier in Uttaranchal, and flows
in a south-easterly direction, draining into
Bangladesh. The Yamuna and Gomti rivers
also arise in the Western Himalayas and join
the Ganga in the plains. The Brahmaputra,
another tributary of Ganga, originates in
Tibet and enters India in Arunachal Pradesh.
It then proceeds westwards, unifying with
Ganga in Bangladesh. Westward-flowing
rivers from this watershed are the Narmada
and Tapti, which drain into the Arabian Sea
in Gujarat.The river network that flows from
east to west constitutes 10% of the total
outflow. All the major rivers in the Deccan,
including Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, and
Cauvery, drain into the Bay of Bengal. They
constitute 20% of the total outflow.
Let us look at some of the major rivers of
India in detail.
MAJOR RIVERS
Ganga or Ganges
Ganga is the national river of India,
and is considered sacred. It is about
2525 km long, and flows through India,
China, Bangladesh, and Nepal, across
52 cities and about 48 towns.
The Ganga River Basin—India’s largest—
includes approximately 25% of the nation’s
area; bounded by the Himalayas in the
north and the Vindhya Range in the south.
It is one of the most fertile and densely
populated basins in the world and covers
an area of about 1,000,000 sq km.
The Basin supports rich biodiversity as
well. It is home to a number of resident
and migratory birds. It has over 140 fish
species, 90 amphibian species, and five
areas that support birds found nowhere
else in the world. Scientists believe that the
zebrafish found in Ganga has the ability to
regenerate its cardiac muscles, which may
hold the key to the discovery of drugs and
treatments, which would allow the human
heart to heal itself after a heart attack.
However, as per the World Wide Fund for
Nature (WWF), Ganga is one of the world’s
top 10 rivers at risk. If pollution is not
managed and if greenhouse gas emissions
are not curbed immediately, the river will
either become too saline for normal use or
will vanish from the map of India!
Brahmaputra
Brahmaputra is the largest Indian river and
has the greatest volume of water, owing to
the heavy annual rainfall in its catchment
basin. Its average width is about 10 km in
the plains—one of the widest in the world.
Based upon the flow rate, Brahmaputra
is the fifth strongest river in the world.
Reportedly, it is one of the few major rivers
which exhibit ‘tidal bore’, a phenomenon
in which incoming tides form waves that
travel up the river against the direction
of the current. This is one of the reasons
behind Brahmaputra’s enormous strength.
Majuli, the largest island created by a
river, also resides in the Brahmaputra.
This river island is about 100 km long. The
Brahmaputra, along with Ganga, creates the
largest delta in the world—the Sundarban
Delta. The river is also a splendid waterway
for commerce and travel.
Narmada
Sacred burning of dead bodies at a ghat near Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
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Narmada originates from Amarkantak
in Madhya Pradesh, and mainly flows in
central India, through Madhya Pradesh,
Gujarat, and Maharashtra. Its total length
is approximately 1289 km, which makes
it the largest west-flowing river in India.
It merges into the Arabian Sea at a point
called Bharuch. The Narmada supports not
only a huge population of people, but also
a great variety of wildlife.
The river, however, acts as a bone of
contention among the states of Madhya
Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra. For
quite some time now, it has been in
the news due to the activities of the
Narmada Bachao Andolan, an organization
protesting against the construction of the
Sardar Sarovar Dam on the river.
Cauvery or Kaveri
The Cauvery is the smallest of the five
major rivers of the Indian peninsula;
about 765 km long. However, it forms
perhaps the most important watershed of
southern India. Its source is a spring in the
Brahmagiri Mountains in Mysore.
However, the river, similar to Narmada,
is the cause of dispute between the states
of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
Yamuna
Yamuna originates from the Yamunotri
Glacier on the southwestern slopes of
the Banderpooch peaks in the Lower
Himalayas. With a total length of about
1370 km, it is the largest tributary of the
Ganga in northern India. It flows through
Delhi, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh, before
merging with the Ganga at Allahabad.
However, Yamuna is one of the most
polluted rivers in the world, especially
around Delhi, which dumps about 57% of
its waste into the river.
Godavari
The Godavari River is a major waterway in
central India, originating at Trimbakeshwar
in Maharashtra and flowing eastwardly
across the Deccan Plateau. The river
empties into the Bay of Bengal through
two mouths. At Rajahmundry, the largest
city on the banks of the Godavari, the
river is in its widest form, with a width
of approximately five km. The Godavari
River Basin area is only second in size to
the Ganga, and its delta on the east coast
is one of India’s main rice-growing areas.
But, its discharge, despite the large
catchment area, is moderate because of
the medium level of annual rainfall.
Krishna
Krishnaveni or River Krishna is one of
the largest and longest rivers of India.
Originating in the Western Ghats at an
altitude of 1300 feet above the sea level in
Mahabaleshwar, it empties into the Bay of
Bengal. Flowing through the three states
of Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Andhra
Pradesh, it covers an approximate area
of 1300 km. Despite its low discharge—
because of low level of rainfall—it is the
third longest river in India.
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Mahanadi
Mahanadi is the lifeline of Chhattisgarh. It
plays a major role in the life of the people,
and it is part of all the major religious
festivals. The Mahanadi, rising in Madhya
Pradesh, flows from the Eastern Ghats
to the Bay of Bengal. The upper drainage
basin of the Mahanadi experiences
periodic droughts, in stark contrast to the
situation in the delta region, where floods
are a common feature. Hirakud Dam,
constructed in the middle reaches of the
Mahanadi, has helped in alleviating these
adverse effects by creating a reservoir.
Satluj
Also known as the Red River, Satluj is the
longest among the five rivers flowing
across Pakistan and northern India. It is
one of the three Trans-Himalayan rivers
originating from the Mansarovar Lake in
the high Tibetan Plateau, which cuts across
the Himalayas. Satluj enters India through
Shipki La.
Sindhu
Originating from Kailash Mountain near
Mansarovar and entering India from
southeastern Ladakh, Sindhu follows the
North West course in the Ladakh and
Zanskar ranges. It covers 550 km in Jammu
and Kashmir, before it enters Leh. In Punjab,
it is met with five major rivers of the state—
Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Satluj, and
finally merges with the Ganga.
Tapi or Tapti
Tapti is a river of central India. It originates
at Multani in the Satpura Forest Range and
is one of the major rivers that run from
east to west. The shorter Tapti follows a
generally parallel course, flowing through
Maharashtra and Gujarat on its way into
the Gulf of Khambhat.
Without doubt, rivers form the blood
vessels of India, and their tributaries, the
capillaries, running through the hearts and
minds of every Indian. Yet, today, almost all
rivers are either dying or drying up…
MAJOR CHALLENGES
Rivers are considered holy in India. Even
so, all kinds of muck and filth find their
way into them. The cities, particularly,
extract water from them, giving millions
of litres of sewage, as well as industrial and
agricultural wastes in return. Most of them
have been degraded to being nothing
more than drains! Also, a recent study has
projected that the atmospheric deposition
of the heavy metals emitted from vehicles
is adding to the pollution load of the rivers.
Ironically, river cleanup programmes
were included in the national agenda
almost two decades back. In spite of this,
Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Krishna, Cauvery,
Damodar, Brahmaputra, and others are
reported to be highly polluted.
Drinking water from polluted rivers
causes serious water-borne diseases
like severe diarrhoea—a leading cause
of death among children in India. The
industries located along the banks of the
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rivers dump hydrochloric acid, mercury
and other heavy metals, bleaches and
dyes, pesticides, and persistent organic
pollutants/polychlorinated
biphenyls
into them. These toxics, which often
accumulate in animal and human tissues,
can cause immense harm to human as well
as animal health.
The existence of rivers is also threatened
by biodiversity loss due to chemical and
biological contaminants as well as due
to heated water released from thermal
power plants; construction of large dams,
which check the natural flow and harm
ecosystems; interlinking of rivers, which
changes their natural course, resulting in
unpredictable negative impacts; reduced
flow; soil runoff and siltation due to largescale deforestation and other land use
practices; indiscriminate sand mining;
pollution due to religious and cultural
activities; climate change impacts like
unpredictable extreme weather events,
resulting in floods; and so on.
Now, as a case in point, let us look at the
state of river Ganga.
Threatened Ganga
As per several studies, Ganga decomposes
organic waste 15–25 times faster than
other rivers. It has an extraordinarily high
rate of reaeration, the process by which
a river absorbs atmospheric oxygen. As
much as 60% of the biological oxygen
demand (BOD) is processed within an hour.
Experts observed that Ganga, once called
the “reservoir of oxygen”, was the only river
in the world that had 12 parts per million
(ppm) of oxygen. Today, however, its
oxygen content has reduced to 4–8 ppm.
As the river passes through the cities
of India, billions of litres of human faeces,
and industrial and agricultural wastes find
their way into it, destroying the natural
ecosystem of the river and threatening
the population depending on it. It has
been reported that over 1.3 billion litres
of sewage is dumped directly into the
river every day, along with thousands of
animal carcasses. Another 260 million
litres of industrial waste are added to it
by the factories along the river’s banks.
Idol immersion is another major cause of
pollution and a threat to aquatic animals.
In cities like Kolkata and Patna, situated on
the banks of the river, thousands of idols
are immersed every year.
All the communities that depend
on Ganga for potable water are under
severe threat. According to a recent
estimate, water samples collected in
Varanasi revealed faecal coliform counts
of about 50,000 bacteria per 100 millilitres
of water, which is 10,000% higher than
the government standards for safe river
bathing (leave alone drinking).
Several water-borne diseases like
cholera, hepatitis, typhoid, and amoebic
dysentery have been reported from the
regions. A study conducted amongst the
Idol immersion in Kolkata
local population for over a period of six
years by a team of doctors revealed that
the incidence of gall bladder disease is
high among the people living near the
Ganga and its tributaries, attributing it to
the high concentrations of heavy metals in
the water and soil.
In addition, scientists claim that due to
the changing climate, the Gangotri Glacier,
which provides up to 70% of the water of
the Ganga during the summer months,
is receding. This may affect the perennial
nature of Ganga and it may end up being
a seasonal river, largely dependent on
monsoons. Also, due to rising sea levels,
more salt water has begun to flow into
it—reflected by the appearance of the
mangroves along the river belt, as well as an
increase in the number of salt water fish in
the river. According to Pranabes Sanyal, the
eastern India representative of the National
Coastal Zone Management Authority,
the sea had extended as far as Kolkata
6500 years ago, and he fears that the same
is happening now. The rising salinity is not
only affecting the quality of drinking water,
agriculture, and biodiversity, but is also
leading to the extinction of one of the few
species of freshwater dolphins.
A recent study of 900 rivers in the world
has classified Ganga as one of the world’s
most rapidly shrinking rivers, showing
significant reduction in discharge to the
ocean. In 2004, reportedly, Ganga had
20% less water than it did 56 years ago.
There is yet another threat. According
to the Comptroller and Auditor General of
India report 2010, there would be no water
in large stretches of the Alaknanda and
Bhagirathi riverbeds if the Uttarakhand
government goes ahead with its plan to
build 53 power projects on them. It also
says that if all projects are allowed to go
through, the aquatic life and biodiversity
of the river basins will be virtually erased.
Ecologists warn that if all the projects are
executed, there will be no free-flowing
water for about 250 km of the Ganga.
WATER CRISIS AND RIVERS
India has 1123 billion cubic metre (BCM)
of water, as against the current demand
of 634 BCM. But, by 2050, the demand is
expected to increase to 1180 BCM. A recent
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research by the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) revealed
that over 109 cubic kilometres of water is
disappearing from India’s underground
water aquifers (2009). According to NASA
scientists, this average trend of one foot
of water disappearing each year from
2002 to 2008 has led to a decrease of
almost 10 feet of underground water.
The study estimates also projected that
the amount of water lost/disappeared is
equivalent to twice the capacity of the
largest water reservoir in India!
DISPUTES OVER RIVERS
The water in a river is trans-boundary, and
all the countries or states through which a
river flows have equal rights on the water.
The issues related to harnessing the water
of rivers, unfortunately, has given rise to
disputes among these countries or states.
India, China, Nepal, and Bangladesh claim
their rights on the rivers that originate
from the Himalayas, such as Ganga and
Brahmaputra. Within India, too, these
issues are mounting day by day, such as
in the case of the Sardar Sarovar Project,
Tehri Project, Cauvery river dispute, and
Mullaperiyar dam. A coordinated approach
and shared vision is required for good river
governance in this case.
INSTITUTIONS, POLICY, AND
GOVERNANCE
Pollution abatement works in the major
rivers of the country commenced with
the launch of the Ganga Action Plan (GAP)
Phase-I in 1985. GAP-I was extended as
GAP-II from 1993 to cover Gomti, Yamuna,
and Damodar. The programme was further
broadened in 1995 to include other major
rivers and renamed as the National River
Conservation Plan (NRCP). Although
`1000 crore was spent under the first and
second phases of GAP between 1985 and
2000, except a few cases, the GAP was
not reported to be a highly successful
programme. The 2006 official audit of the
GAP revealed that it had met only 39% of
its sewage treatment target. Moreover,
the Plan was behind schedule by over
13 years. In terms of both the time taken
and the cost involved, the GAP compares
favourably with those of other major
rivers of the world like Thames, Rhine,
and Danube. According to government
officials, some of the challenges faced in
the implementation of the GAP included
delays in land acquisition; inadequate
capacity of local bodies/agencies; financial
constraints of the local bodies, leading to
improper operations and maintenance
of assets created; low level of public
awareness and participation; erratic power
supply; court cases; and non-availability of
ecological flow in many rivers.
As water is a state subject, the creation
of sewerage infrastructure is the primary
responsibility of the state government and
the concerned local bodies, supported by
the central government. It is suggested that
dovetailing the NRCP with the schemes
of Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban
Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and Urban
Infrastructure Development Scheme for
Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT)—
launched by the Government of India for
creating urban infrastructure, including
sewerage systems, in various towns of the
country—may be a solution.
The Indian government has also
constituted a National Ganga River
Basin Authority (NGRBA), with experts
and state chief ministers as members.
It works closely with ministers of water
resources, environment and forests, urban
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development, and others, as well as
agencies working on river conservation
and pollution management. In the first
phase of the NGRBA activities, projects
worth `1394 crore have been cleared
by its Empowered Steering Committee.
These include projects in Uttar Pradesh,
Bihar, West Bengal, and Uttarakhand. They
will take up the development of sewer
networks, sewage treatment plants, sewage
pumping stations, electric crematoria,
community toilets, river fronts, and canals.
This will be done with assistance from the
World Bank. The central government, in
February 2011, gave in-principle approval
to the NGRBA with powers to approve
major projects on Indian rivers, aimed at
balancing the water needs for agriculture
and protecting the environment. On
1 November 2010, the government gave
in-principle nod for declaring the 135-km
stretch of the Ganga between Gaumukh
and Uttarkashi as an eco-sensitive zone,
seeking specific activities to protect the
rich biodiversity of the region under the
Section 3 of the Environment Act, according
to which only those activities approved by
the eco-management plans for that region
could be undertaken there. In view of this,
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31
• Under the Gomti Action Plan Phase-I,
out of the 31 sanctioned schemes,
26 have been completed.
• Besides Ganga and its tributaries,
the NRCD has taken up the pollution
abatement projects in 14 other states,
covering 30 rivers and 68 towns.
• The Calcutta High Court has announced
that the guidelines framed by the West
Bengal Pollution Control Board will
have to be followed for cleaning up the
Ganga after the immersion of idols.
• The establishment of National Ganga
River Basin Research Institute for the
sustainable development of the river
basin in India has also been proposed.
Polluted banks of Hooghly River
the NGRBA approved the discontinuation
of three hydropower projects proposed
on river Ganga. The Centre has said that
by 2020, Ganga would be cleaned up, and
Rs 15,000 crore will be spent for it.
The National River Conservation
Directorate (NRCD) is engaged in the
implementation of the River and Lake
Action Plans under the National Lake
Conservation Plan (NLCP) and the
National River Conservation Plan (NRCP)
by providing assistance to the state
governments. In 2010, it assigned the task
of preparing the Ganga basin management
plan to a consortium of seven Indian
Institutes of Technology (IITs). Along with
this, it entrusted The Energy and Resources
Institute (TERI), New Delhi, with the project
on ‘Environmental and Social Impact
Assessments, including Management
Framework’ for the Ganga basin.
The NRCP aims to improve the
water quality of rivers, through the
implementation of pollution abatement
works, to the level of designated best use.
So far, 35 rivers have been covered under
the Programme. A total of 33 projects for
the conservation of 49 lakes have been
sanctioned in 13 states at a total estimated
cost of `632.62 crore.
The NRCP presently covers 167 towns
along the polluted stretches of 38 rivers
in 20 states, with a present cost of works
sanctioned of `4700 crore.
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The National Environment Policy, 2006,
advocates a holistic approach for the
NRCP, including integrated river basin
management, wise use of wetlands, water
efficiency in all sectors, afforestation, and
so on. The National Water Mission (NWM),
one of the key missions of the National
Action Plan on Climate Change, aims
at “conservation of water, minimizing
wastage and ensuring its more equitable
distribution, both across and within states,
through integrated water resources
development and management”.
The Government of India is in the
process of revising the National Water
Policy (2002), including all the relevant
considerations that address the challenges
in India’s water sector. The new policy
proposes pricing of water as an important
element, especially
for
extracting
underground water, to ensure its rational
use. According to Mihir Shah, Member,
Planning Commission, empowering water
users associations is very important for the
effective enforcement of pricing of water.
Some more...
• The Ministry of Environment and
Forests has received financial assistance
of 13.33 billion Yen from the Japan Bank
for International Cooperation (JBIC)
for the implementation of the Yamuna
Action Plan (YAP) Phase–II, which is part
of the NRCP.
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However, as most river management
programmes mainly focus on pollution
diversion and treatment through the use
of technology, less attention is paid to the
looming social and behavioural issues that
are manifested through the attitude of the
people. No supply-driven technology will
work unless the people truly understand
the issues and change their way of living.
WAY FORWARD
The Government of India has taken a
very responsible stand in conserving and
protecting the rivers and has initiated/
proposed several laudable activities to
achieve this goal. Here is the way forward.
• Convey the message to use water
judiciously, after all, each drop counts.
Water
conservation
programmes
lead to improved discharge and flood
containment. Media can play a role in
water conservation as well. A classic
example is the Palathulli programme,
being implemented by Malayala
Manorama, a leading daily in Kerala.
• Identify, restore, increase, and upgrade
river recharge techniques and adopt
alternative
source
augmentation
strategies, such as desalination, waste
water recycling and reuse, rainwater
harvesting, and artificial recharge,
integrating traditional wisdom and
advanced scientific know-how.
• Promote river basin management and
develop indicators for water health.
Adaptation funds must be allocated for
river basin management.
• Promote strategies for harvesting and
wise use of floodwaters, thus converting
the curse of floods to a boon.
• Promote efficient use of water in rainfed
and irrigated agriculture, based on
the principle of “more crop per drop”;
cultivate less water-intensive crops;
adopt drip irrigation, and soil and water
conservation measures; conjunctively
use surface water and groundwater;
explore the option of grey/wastewater
irrigation; and so on.
• Launch outreach and advocacy
programmes for spreading awareness
on water, energy, and carbon footprints
throughout the river/water value
chain. Attribute value to water through
measures like water pricing.
• Strengthen institutional capacities,
social mobilization, public–private
partnership models, and so on for better
adoption of conservation methods.
• Assess physical, regulatory, and
reputational water risks associated with
climate change with regard to rivers
and engage key stakeholders as a part
of water and climate risk assessment.
Facilitate women volunteers to spread
the message and implement activities
at the micro level.
• Look at water resource protection and
conservation, with special emphasis on
improving water quality, environmental
health conditions, sanitation, and legal
and institutional linkages within an
•
•
•
•
•
•
ecosystem approach. Attention should
be paid to the spread of water-related
diseases. Social awareness and capacity
building should be promoted as part of
all sanitation programmes.
Implement mechanisms to prevent and
resolve water-related conflicts at the
local and national levels.
Incentivize water conservation and
demand management efforts through
tax rebates, for instance.
Encourage good governance among
the agencies involved in the protection
of rivers. Promote and empower
river basin organizations at different
regional levels. Promote regional and
trans-boundary
research
and
networking, advanced scientific tools
for data generation, technology transfer,
sharing of water expertise, and so on.
Recognize
and
highlight
the
importance of traditional knowledge in
good governance and management.
Establish cross-sectoral policy linkages
that improve water use efficiency in
river basins and promote integrated
water resource management strategies.
Last, but not the least, put population
control measures in place. Too many
people with too little resource is the
root cause of the problem.
HOW CAN I SAVE RIVERS?
Knowingly or unknowingly, the common
people, who are the ultimate users and
Meri Dilli, Meri Yamuna, a project for saving the
Yamuna river in Delhi–National Capital Region
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beneficiaries, have always been kept away
from actions and projects related to saving
the rivers. But, they should be made a part
of all decisions and efforts towards the
conservation of rivers.
River protection or conservation
also requires proactive citizens. Usually,
when we hear about river pollution or
some related problem, we think that
administrative incapability, incompetent
technologies, and political deterioration
have led to it, and that the problems will
be taken care of by the government.“I have
nothing to do with it”! But, we have to ask
ourselves—can we live without rivers? Can
we live with polluted rivers?
Let us create a “water religion”—a
way of life that will waive the darkness
of ignorance away and spread the light
of consciousness to save our rivers.
Let “water religion” be our faith and
“water ethics” rule our life! n
Sreelakshmi
Kannan
is
Fellow
Area Convener, Water Resources
and Management, TERI, and Mini
Deputy Manager and Associate
(Krishiyankanam), Vegetable and
Promotion Council Keralam, Kochi.
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and
Policy
K is
Editor
Fruit
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