'Saints not against dams, but concerned about polluted Ganga'

Allahabad, July 31 (UNI) The saints and sadhus are not against the construction of dams and barrages on Ganga, but will not compromise on the issue of the river's pollution, Akhil Bharatiya Maa Ganga Pradushan Mukti Abhiyan said today.

Abhiyan's national convenor Swami Hari Chaitanya Brahmachari told UNI here, the government must take urgent steps to check the inflow of city drains and industry effluents in Ganga.

''The government must ensure clean and fresh water in the river, which has been the country's lifeline since ages. The decreasing water level and the increasing pollution in Ganga are a sin against the river, which the Hindus worship as 'maa' (mother), he said.

The Swami claimed Rs 1,326 crore had been released so far to clean Ganga under the Ganga Action Plan (GAP), but unfortunately the river had become more polluted.

He demanded the formation of a committee comprising eminent personalities -- entrusted with the work of GAP auditing.

''This committee should also conduct on-the-spot verification of the work being claimed by agencies deputed for cleaning of Ganga.'' The Swami claimed that the Uttar Pradesh government had announced allocation of Rs 176 crore for various works for the 2007 'ardh kumbh', but nothing had been said about the cleaning of Ganga.

He recalled that Pt Madan Mohan Malviya had made an accord with the then British regime for releasing adequate water in Ganga to maintain the flow of river.

''Sadly, the present union government has forgotten the accord and is creating various hurdles against the uninterrupted flow of the river in the form of dams and barrages.'' Praising the judiciary, the Swami added that over 26 factories in Kanpur which discharged waste and polluted water in the river, had been closed down following the High Court directives.

He further demanded release of 1,000 cusecs of water during the 'ardh kumbh' in the wake of influx of large number of devotees.

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