WATER POLLUTION: GANGA RIVER IN INDIA

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Water, a substance composed of the chemical elements hydrogen and oxygen and
existing in gaseous, liquid, and solid states. It is one of the most plentiful and essential of
compounds. A tasteless and odourless liquid at room temperature, it has the important ability
to dissolve many other substances. Indeed, the versatility of water as a solvent is essential to
living organisms. Life is believed to have originated in the aqueous solutions of the world’s
oceans, and living organisms depend on aqueous solutions, such as blood and digestive
juices, for biological processes. In small quantities water appears colourless, but water
actually has a basic blue colour caused by slight absorption of light at red wavelengths
(Zumdahl, 2018).

With 66% of the world's surface secured by water and the human body comprising of
75 percent of it, it is obviously certain that water is one of the main components in charge of
life on earth (Laleva, 2018). Water circles through the land similarly as it does through the
human body, transporting, dissolving and renewing supplements and natural issue, while
diverting waste material. Promote in the body, it directs the exercises of liquids, tissues, cells,
lymph, blood and glandular discharges.

Water contamination, the arrival of substances into subsurface groundwater or into

lakes, streams, waterways, estuaries, and seas to the point where the substances interfere with
useful utilization of the water or with the common working of biological communities
(Nathason J, 2017). Anyhow the arrival of substances, for example, chemicals or
microorganisms, water contamination may likewise incorporate the arrival of vitality, as
radioactivity or warmth, into waterways.

India's over population and cultural ideologies have led to the strong pollution of the
Ganges River. "Mother Ganga" or the Ganges River is viewed as a divinity so pure that it
cannot be polluted. Many Indians believe it cannot be polluted by human action especially
religious practices. However the Ganges River is being polluted through human sewage,
agriculture and industrial misuse. The National Ganga River Basin Project has been targeting
point source and secondary source pollution by building advanced integrated wastewater
pond systems and municipal sewage systems (Goffman, 2008).

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 The Ganges is respected in India but it is also the drain that carries away the waste
from the 450 million people who live in its surrounding area. Pollution from the factories and
farms of the fastest-growing large economy in the world and from the riverside cremation of
Hindu true believers has turned its waters toxic (Rowlat J, 2016). What is dumped in the river
Ganges? Raw sewage, plastic bags and bottles, industrial effluents, human waste, chemicals
from tanneries, discarded idols, cow dung, partially cremated corpses, garlands of flowers,
human remains, animal carcasses, butcher’s offal, chemical dyes from sari factories and
construction waste (Dhillon, 2014).

Today, Ganges is considered to be the fifth most polluted river in the world. It has
noted that no one in India spoke of the Ganges as polluted until the late 1970s. However,
pollution has been an old and continuous process in the river as by the time people were
finally speaking of the Ganges as polluted, stretches of over six hundred kilometres were
essentially ecologically dead zones. A number of initiatives have been undertaken to clean
the river but failed to deliver desired results. After getting elected, India's Prime Minister
Narendra Moodi declared to work in cleaning the river and controlling pollution.
Subsequently, the Namami Ganga project was announced by the government in the July 2014
budget. An estimated Rs 2,958 Crores (US$460 million) have been spent till July 2016 in
various efforts in cleaning up of the river.

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2.0 CAUSES

There are a lot of causes that led to the water pollution on Ganges River, India. The
main cause of water pollution in the river is the urbanization followed by dumping of various
harmful industrial wastes into the river and lastly is the religious and social practices.

The river flows through 29 cities with population over 100,000 and 23 cities with
population between 50,000 and 100,000 and have about 48 towns. A large proportion of the
sewage water with higher organic load in the Ganges is from this population through
domestic water usage (Chand).

The biggest reason for water pollution in India is urbanization at an uncontrolled rate.
The rate of urbanization has only gone up at a fast pace in the last decade. This has led to
several environmental issues in the long term like insufficient quantities or quantity in water
supply. The areas near rivers have seen plenty of towns and cities come up and this has also
contributed to the growing intensity of problems.

Uncontrolled urbanization in these areas has also led to generation of sewage water.
In the urban areas water is used for both industrial and domestic purposes from water bodies
such as rivers, lakes, streams, wells, and ponds. Still, 80% of the water that they use for their
domestic purposes is passed out in the form of wastewater. In most of the cases, this water is
not treated properly and as such it leads to tremendous pollution of surface-level freshwater.

This polluted water also seeps through the surface and poisons groundwater. It is
estimated that cities with populations of more than 10000 people generate around 16,662
million liters of wastewater in a day. Strangely enough, 70% of the people in these cities have
access to sewerage facilities. Cities and towns located on the banks of Ganges generate
around 33% of wastewater generated in the country (Agarwal, 2015).

The second cause that led to the water pollution is the dumping of the various harmful
industrial wastes into the river. People did not feel hesitate while dumping the wastes into the
river although Ganges River is being considered as the holy river. The establishment of a
large number of industrial cities on the bank of the Ganges like Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi
and Patna make countless tanneries, chemical plants, textile mills, distilleries,
slaughterhouses and hospitals prosper and grow along this and contribute to the pollution of
the Ganges by dumping untreated waste into it (Mallet, 2017).

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 For an example, one coal-based power plant on the banks of the Pandu River which is
the Ganges tributary near the city of Kanpur burns almost 600,000 tons of coal each year and
produces 210,000 tons of fly ash. The ash is dumped into ponds from which a slurry (semi
liquid mixture) is being filtered and being mixed with domestic wastewater before it being
released into the Pandu River. Fly ash contains toxic heavy metals such as lead and copper.
The amount of parts per million of copper released in the Pandu before it even reaches the
Ganges is a thousand times higher than in uncontaminated water. Industrial wastes are about
12% of the total volume of wastes reaching the Ganges. Although a relatively low proportion,
the dumping of industrial wastes is a cause because they are often toxic and non-
biodegradable (Wohl, 2010).

Lastly, the religious and social practices in the Ganges River have also contributed to
the major causes. Ganges River is being considered as one of the holy river in India including
Yamuna River. Religious faith and social practices also add to pollution of our river waters.
The corpse of cattle and other animals are being disposed in the rivers. Dead bodies are being
burning into ashes before dump it on the river banks. Partially burnt bodies are also flung into
the river. All this is done as a matter of religious faith and in keeping with ancient rituals
(Sanghi, 2013). These practices pollute the river water and adversely affect the water quality.

People will often have funerals and cremations along the shores of the Ganges and
then throw the ashes of deceased loved ones into the river. This is done so that the soul of the
deceased person can be saved and purified. The ashes are only adding to the pollution in the
river. Thousands of bodies are cremated at the Ganges every year and the bodies of cattle,
animals, and unwanted babies, usually those born to an unmarried couple, are also disposed
of in the river. The toxins given off from the ashes and decaying carcasses only add to the
hideous sanitation of the Ganges (Hespanhol, 1997).

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3.0 EFFECTS

As per mentioned above there were many causes identified such as urbanization,
dumping of various harmful industrial wastes into the river and lastly is the religious and
social practices. The effects of Ganges river pollution are tremendous to human, biodiversity
and ecology. “What goes around, comes around”, the saying best reflects in this case, where
citizens residing and using the Ganges river are suffering the illnesses and worst sicknesses
due to polluting the river. It is said that, around 10,000 people residing along the river in
these regions. The Ganges river is mainly use for three situation which is to wash clothes,
cremate dead bodies and throw burned ashes and also as drinking water.

Firstly, the polluted river impacts the humans through severe diseases; it is said that,
an average of 450 men and 1,000 women are affected by gallbladder cancer. Besides that, out
of the 10.3 million deaths that occurred in 2004, over 500,000 were from waterborne
diseases. Also, typhoid and cholera make up 80% of all health-related issues in India,
especially along the Ganges river. Symptoms of both of these diseases include acute
dehydrating diarrhea (cholera), prolonged febrile illness with abdominal symptoms (typhoid
fever), acute bloody diarrhea (dysentery), and chronic diarrhea (Brainerd diarrhea) (Weebly).
Moreover, as stated by Prasad, recent water samples collected in Varanasi in 2014, revealed
faecal coli form counts of about 50,000 bacteria per 100 millilitres of water, 10,000% higher
than the government standard for safe river bathing. The result of this pollution is an array of
water-borne diseases including cholera, hepatitis, typhoid and amoebic dysentery. An
estimated 80% of all health problems and one-third of deaths in India are attributable to
water-borne diseases (Satyaprakash Pandey, 2014).

According to Singh, from The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), says that 80
per cent of Varanasi respondent felt that water quality of Ganga river has an impact on their
health. The survey conducted from December 2014 to February 2015 covered seven river
cities including Delhi on River Yamuna, Varanasi on River Ganga, Cuttack on River
Mahanadi, Surat on River Tapti, Jabalpur on River Narmada, Vijayawada on River Krishna,
Dibrugarh on River Brahmaputra. The survey had three focus areas - overall environment,
health and environment and environment in river cities. A total of 15,145 people were
surveyed in these cities including 2012 in Varanasi. The respondents were distributed across
different age groups, occupation, and educational background and income levels. . The
survey aims to gauge the perception, awareness, opinion and behaviour of people towards

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environment in seven Indian cities including Varanasi (Singh, 2015). Below are the results
from the survey made.

No Respond questions Percentage (%)

1. Felt that the river water in the city was in good condition 5%
2. Felt that the odour in the surrounding areas of River 58%
Ganga has worsened
3. Found river water unsafe to drink without treatment 96%
4. Held individual citizens responsible for the current 72%
condition of the river
5. Held industries responsible for the current condition of 15%
the river
6. Held local government/Municipal Corporation 13%
responsible for the current condition of the river
7. Respondents had heard about the National Mission for 55%
Clean Ganga
8. Respondents who had heard about it but did not know 31%
the details of the Mission
9. Respondents thought that the mission would be 65%
successful in achieving its goal.
10. About 89% respondents felt there should be a reduction 89%
on the amount of religious material such as ashes and
flowers released in the river
11. Respondents felt that increasing dead bodies of human 92%
beings and cattle floating in the Ganges posed a threat to
the health of the river
12. Respondents thought that there had been a significant 60%
reduction in the flow of the river, particularly in the non-
monsoon season
13. While 54% of the respondents thought that the river has 54%
become more flood prone and devastating in the last five
years
14. Respondents identified solid waste being dumped into 56%

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 the river and lack of government or municipality's
initiative to clean the river
15. Respondents felt that the environmental indicators such 50%
as number of bird and insect species, air quality, surface
water quality, green cover, and waste and waste
management had worsened in the past five years.
16. Respondents identified human activities such as 56%
industrial activity, transportation, construction and
deforestation to be the cause of changing climate
patterns
17. Respondents perceived it to be a natural process 43%
18. Respondents felt that no government policies or 56%
legislations exist relating to wastewater treatment
19. Respondents felt that the Government of India's 67%
"Swachh Bharat Abhiyan" will be a success in
improving the quality of the rivers flowing through the
cities.
20. About 48% identified water quality as the issue with 48%
greatest visible impact on human health
21. Respondents perceived that water-borne diseases are 63%
majorly caused by bad quality of environment

According to Rogers, Vijay Kumar who daily does chores of people’s clothes is just
one of the more than 400 million people who depend on the Ganges river for their
livelihoods. But he said he's struggling today because local environmental authorities are
trying to shut down his business, saying that his soap suds are polluting the river. This sort of
challenge to balance economic interests and environmental protection is one being played out
the world over. The Ganges river is not just an economic lifeline, but also a spiritual one.
Hindus worship the river is as a goddess, Maa Ganga or Mother Ganga. Every year millions
of Hindu pilgrims come to Varanasi, seeking spiritual purification in the waters of the
Ganges. Many other Hindus who come to Varanasi cremate their loved ones and throw the
ashes in the sacred river. Hindus believe that if you die or are cremated in Varanasi, you get
moksha or liberation from the cycles of death and rebirth. But while the river Ganges known

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in India as the Ganges, may be pure for religious believers, in secular terms it is in fact
gravely polluted. It is also known that it not only affect human by health but also through
their jobs (Rogers, 2013).

Besides that, the biodiversity and also the ecology are affected tremendously due to
the badly polluted Ganges river. This diversity is at its richest at the myriad mouths of the
Ganga, where it forms the world’s largest mangrove forest. Also, estimates of freshwater fish
species vary between 104 and 161. The Ganga basin is the second richest in Asia in terms of
biodiversity, following the Mekong. With a length 60% of that of the Mekong, it has 74 types
of fish, whereas the Mekong has 77. Moreover, for decades, the level of pollutants in the
Ganges has been well above the permissible value. Basic indicators of the state of the water,
such as biological oxygen demand and dissolved oxygen, also show water quality is nowhere
near what it should be (Chatterjee, 2012).

Furthermore, the Ganges river dolphin is a unique species yet an endangered one.
Pollution levels are a problem, and are expected to increase with the development of
intensive modern industrial practices in the region. Compounds such as organochlorine and
butyl tin found in the tissues of Ganges River dolphins are a cause for concern about their
potential effects on the subspecies. In 1982, the population in India was estimated to be
between 4,000 and 5,000 individuals. Today the population has a much reduced range, The
lowest estimate for the total population is 1,200–1,800 individuals (World Wildlife Fund,
2012). According to UK Essays, pollutants enters into to the river are mostly diluted;
however the organisms living in the river tend to concentrate the pollutants into their body by
various mechanisms, like adsorption, absorption, ingestion. The concentration of pollutant
increases with higher tropic levels. Water pollution also leads to large scale death of aquatic
and terrestrial animals, reduced reproduction rate, increased incidence of diseases,
imbalances created in secondary food chains (UK Essays, 2015).

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4.0 SOLUTIONS

For many years, governments and local organisations have invested billions of rupees
in devising methods and running numerous campaigns directed at both clean-up and the
restoration of the river, but despite this, many are still mistreating the rivers, performing
illegal and unsustainable practices, and millions continue to use the natural resource as a
public drainage system, dumping in it all manner of waste (Plummer , 2017). In other words,
the targets of existing programs have not achieved as hoped. National Ganga River Basin
Authority (NGRBA), National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), Central Pollution Control
Board (CPCB) and several states’ conservation agencies are being in charge actively to
manage Ganga until today. It is also important to understand the fact that solutions used to
solve pollution problems in other rivers cannot be used to solve the pollution problem in
Ganges due to its unique characteristics and religious significance among the communities in
India.

A great challenge became obstacles in the making of environmental policies for

Ganga river as the river was not only important for economy but also for spirituals. This
matter has somehow leads to the failures of the policy implementation. However, various
initiatives have been undertaken by authorised bodies as well as International Institutions
since the serious problems begin concerned. Under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and
Climate Change in India, detailed steps have been delegated to different authority from
national to the state and local levels inserted with environmental acts (Ministry of
Environment, Forest and Climate Change: Government of India, 2017). Among the initiatives
are the Namami Ganga Project, building 65 crematoriums and proposing new Ganga Act
(Rejuvenation Protection and Maintenance). The result of these was not totally achieved as
wished since the river condition is still at critical.

We believed that it is important for policy maker; in order to create an environmental

policy or any solutions for environmental problems, the costs and benefits should always be
prior to be considered. Above all actions that have been undertaken by authorities mentioned,
we would suggest several solutions by using a valuation techniques as well as benefit-cost
analysis. In assessing the pollution cost, the data obtained shows that the pollution has
damaged human health, animals and enjoyment from outdoor activities.

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 Hence solutions could be divided into 3 (THREE) main factors encompassing social,
religious and technological. A precise target groups to be focused on are including the
industrial entrepreneur and populations along the riversides. By incorporating the above three
factors we can come up with an ultimate solution which would enable to solve the pollution
problem in the long run.

Firstly, the most important factor in solving any issue is through awareness. But in the
case of Ganga River, to achieve this is going to be a major challenge. The reason is that the
majority of the people who use the river are from rural areas from all over India. These
people are considered to be not aware of the issues that are surrounding the pollution problem
of the river. So the first solution that we would like to propose is to create an all-inclusive
awareness campaign in which corporations and societal regimes comes together to spread
awareness about the cleanliness and pollution problem in the River. It could be achieved
through targeted marketing through the usage of social media, mass media and other tools at
disposal. As a project like this would be enormous, we believe the cost will also be
considerably high. So the proposal to get the funding for this project is through the
formulation of a policy to tax the businesses and corporations that are situated near the river.
The approach used would be based on the fairness and equity concept. This concept stipulates
that benefits and cost of environmental improvements should be distributed among the
members of the society.

Furthermore, there could be an improvement in the enforcement via strict policies to fine
anyone who litters or dump waste on the river. This type of policies have been successful in
countries like Singapore, South Korea and China where the government of those countries
put hefty sum of fines to companies and corporations who indulge in dumping activities.

The second solution is a technological solution. We propose that the government

implements a Hydro Filter System at strategic locations in the river to conduct self-cleaning
of the river. Hydro filter system is a system which is powered by the kinetic energy that flows
with the current in the river to clean it. The downside of this solution is the cost. As hydro
filter systems are expensive in the short run due to its high implementation and installation.
So to tackle this government needs to use the cost benefit approach. This means that even
though in the short run it is expensive to install, the project itself would be self-sustaining due
to the fact that this type of systems can generate electricity which can be used to supply to
nearby towns and cities. And also this solution would be the most cost effective solution as at

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the same time it cleans the river it would also be providing electricity to the nearby towns and
cities.

Third solution is based on the religion. The reason why we believe that religion itself
can play an important role in formulating the ultimate solution for the pollution problem in
Ganga river is due to the religious significance of the river to the people of India. The river is
known to be a God among the Hindu people. Therefore, the solution we propose is that
religion to be incorporated in the awareness campaign that we had proposed earlier. Religion
can play an important role to persuade people and to motivate them against the pollution of
the river. And also any tax or fine that is levied upon the people who misuses the river could
be justified and accepted by the people if it is presented to them as a religious solution.

All in all, the ultimate solution would be centred among the three solutions that have
been discussed earlier to provide a more full-fledged approach to solve the problem. Social
solution supported by a religious approach with the element of technology can be used to
implement the solution to solve this problem. It is also important to understand the fact that
this river in its glory days in the 16th century was so pure and clean that people were able to
drink the water from it. So we can present this notion to the people to make them understand
the negativity that surrounds the river due to pollution.\

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5.0 CONCLUSION

Water has been the essence of life. Rivers and freshwater lakes has been the main
provider of fresh water to the human civilisations all over the world since the beginning of
time. In the case of Ganga river, it has been a significant part of History of India and its
religious encirclement. The pollution problem that is facing the river will not only affect the
people that are living in the country. But it will also affect all the living beings and natural
order of the country. Much blame has to be put on the rapid urbanization process that is going
on in the country. Due to this a solution needs to be formulated for this problem. We believe
that due to its unique characteristics and societal hierarchy, the solution needs to come as a
religious, societal incorporated with technological factors.

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