The Ganges - A New Hope

The River Ganges is considered to be the holiest river in India with

a deep and long history of spiritual, economic, and religious
significance. A life-giving source, the river provides water to 40%
of India's population. The river on its path from the Himalayas,
where it rises from, to the Bay of Bengal, crosses 2500 km
through the northern and eastern states of India. Geographical
boundaries do not hold back the mighty river, which flows through
parts of Nepal, China and Bangladesh. It accounts for 30% of our
country's water resources and 26% of its landmass. The Ganges
has been declared India's National River.
Yet the fate of River Ganga itself seems bleak. It is one of the
most polluted rivers in Asia, crossing the WHO defined levels of
permissible pollutants by 3000 times. Everyday 1.7 billion litres of
waste such as defecation, untreated industrial waste and pollution
during religious events runs into the river. Additionally, about 89
million litres of sewage is disposed off in the river daily. The water
is very quickly becoming unfit for drinking, bathing and even
agricultural purposes. The discovery of Mercury in the water has
raised alarms.
Earlier governments have attempted to clean the Ganges. Rajv
Gandhi, in 1984, began a campaign to restore the river and
rebuild the banks. However, due to a lack of technological
resources and expertise at the time, the complex problems were
unresolved.
Three decades later, on August 15th 2014, current Prime Minister
Narendra Modi began the "Clean India"movement. The Clean
Ganga Project is of national significance and the roadmap towards
achieving it is not a smooth one. Billions of Rupees, massive
intellectual and physical resources and meticulous governance

are essential components required to take on this mega problem.

However, it also represents a great business opportunity for those
involved in urban planning, clean technology, wastewater
management, sanitation, agriculture and infrastructure.
"The Government has taken a great step forward but in order to
maintain momentum and achieve objectives it is imperative that
the private sector play a large role in the execution of national
plans." states Mr. Arun Lakhani, MD Vishvaraj Infrastructure and
a great promoter of government-private relationships.
The "large role" mentioned by Mr. Lakhani can be best defined as
a "Public Private Partnership" or a PPP. Many believe that only
private organizations with their streamlined processes and sense
of accountability towards investors would be capable of bringing
this much sought after change. Some experts have even gone as
far as to state that only foreign companies with their technology
and managerial prowess can solve the complexities of this
situation. In fact, foreign direct investment regulations may be
relaxed to attract funding and technology.
A PPP model has given rise to several opportunities and with
vigilante monitoring and diligent reporting, a cleanRiver Ganga
could be a reality. The current situation, however, is dire.
Thousands of villages need toilets, waste management facilities
and sewage treatment plants. Small manufacturing units often
dump toxic waste and in order to prevent this, treatment facilities
will need to be constructed. Modern technology makes it possible
to remove pollutants from the water and treat it but this too will
require resources and budgetary expenditure. Long term solutions
highly depend on the education of people living along the banks,
development of sustainable practices within the agricultural
community and the prevention of chemical fertilisers flowing into
the river.

"The big question is, "Who will take on this colossal task?". The
answer is "Everyone, starting from the government and trickling
down to individual citizens. Everyone needs to be responsible."
said Mr. Lakhani.
Indeed, the government has begun on this journey and has
beckoned several individuals and organisations to join it. With a
massive budgetary requirement of $15 billion and a timeline of 8
years to achieve full restoration, the Government has turned
towards private investors. Some reports have suggested that 70%
of the funding will be provided by the Private sector, across the
coming decade.
With the opportunity to make a change and earn profits comes a
large risk. Not every private player is willing to enter into a PPP,
let alone be eligible. The long term nature of this project and the
perceived issues of working with the Government has kept several
players away from the Clean Ganga Project. Then there are those
who have risen to the occasion and hope to make the most of the
current situation.
Not surprisingly, international companies have been quick to
make a move. Israeli and Danish companies were some of the
first to show interest in entering a PPP. Some 200 Israeli
companies have been considered capable of purifying the Ganga.
In the south, the state of Karnataka has allowed NaanDanJain, an
Indian-Israeli company, to create a test farm to study drip
irrigation with the hope of saving water. Agriculture and the
irrigation industry are at a stage where their growth is inevitable
and this has attracted attention of foreign players.
Gujrat has already opened its doors to a group of Danish
companies who are implementing a water management project.

The PM's state aims to reduce pollution through this pilot project,
study the process and spread the knowledge. Revolutionary ideas,
transition of expertise and a change in practices are the goals.
A natural way of cleansing the river water, by creating a series of
channels and wetlands, is being explored by Water Revive, a
bioengineering company which aims to use low-maintenance,
natural solutions.
"With a problem this complex. It only makes sense that different
approaches are explored within the PPP model", states Mr.
Lakhani, an expert in executing PPPs.
The Israeli Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor is leading the
NewTech initiative which aims at matching Indian water, energy
and environment technology companies with Israeli counterparts
to discover solutions.
This is just the first wave of hope that India is witnessing. There is
much to be done and Indian companies will also play a large role
in the coming years, but it is a great sign to witness support from
countries across the world. It has helped to reinforce the benefits
of a PPP and encouraged several National players too. There will
be medium and long-term projects of varied nature and each will
be a great chance for private companies to come forwards and
help in shaping the evolution of the Ganges and the Nation.