Rakesh Jaiswal | December, 2002

Hundreds of thousands of high-density plastic bags are illegally being used for constructing barriers and a makeshift road during sand mining operations at the Kanpur stretch of the river Ganga.

	Plastic bags clogging the Ganga

These hazardous plastic bags are swept into the river with the onset of the monsoons. This is in violation of the provisions of Water Pollution (Prevention) Act, 1974.

Ironically, the illegal action by private contractors also seeks to undo massive efforts of the governmental agencies and civil society agencies to counter the critical limits of pollution that have been observed in the river Ganga.

Finally, in the light of this flagrant abuse of the river ecology, the National Water Policy can at best be seen as a pious hope rather than a living reality.

The Eco Friends NGO in Kanpur has sent an appeal back in May to a number of individuals and institutions with the hope that some action would be initiated against the said act.

One of the recipients of our letter, Dr. Manmohan Singh, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, had sent a letter to Shri T.R. Baalu, Minister of Environment & Forest, to take proper action.

Mr. Baalu in turn, had sent a letter to Sushree Mayawati, Chief Minister of U.P. The Chief Secretary of U.P. constituted a one man enquiry committee consisting of Mr. S.A. Farooqui, a scientist from the Geological Survey of India, Lucknow.

Hello, Mr. Farooqui, where's your report?
Mr. Farooqui came to Kanpur in mid-October and went to see the site where the said obstruction in the river was situated. No one knows what happened to his report or what action the State or the Central Government is planning to take.

Also, Mr. Farooqui had visited the place after the monsoon when the obstruction had been washed away. After the water in the Ganga receded to the pre-monsoon level, a motorable road has once again been built at the same site.

While raising awareness about this issue, Eco-Friends is also making an urgent appeal for immediate remedial action to remove these plastic bags from the river Ganga by the concerned agencies and ensure that these unscrupulous and outlawed acts are strictly prohibited in the future.


Rakesh Jaiswal is executive director of Eco-Friends in Kanpur