New Delhi: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of neglecting the Namami Gange project and failing to fulfil his “guarantee of cleaning Ganga”.
Taking to his social media handle on ‘X’, Kharge while citing a Parliament question alleged that despite nearly 11 years since the Namami Gange scheme was launched in 2014, Rs 42,500 crore allocated for the scheme, only Rs 19,271 crore had been spent as of December 2024, leaving 55 percent of the funds unused.
He questioned the government’s "indifference" towards “Maa Ganga”, despite repeated assurances.
The Congress President also criticized the lack of progress in sewage treatment, citing a November 2024 Rajya Sabha reply which showed that 38 percent of Namami Gange projects were still pending. While 82 percent of the total allocated funds were to be spent to build Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs), but 39 percent of STPs are still not completed, and those that are completed are not even operational.
He highlighted the alarming pollution figures in key states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.
Kharge said, in UP, “Seventy five percent of the drains that were supposed to go to STPs, their untreated sewage is directly going into Gangaji, with 3513.16 MLD sewage, being dumped into them. A staggering 97 percent of STPs are reportedly not following environmental rules”.
The Congress President further said that in Bihar, 46 percent of STPs are not operational while the rest do not even meet faecal coliform levels. In West Bengal, 40 STPs are not functional and 95 percent do not meet the National Green Tribunal (NGT) norms while 76.16 do not comply with MoEF norms.
He said, “The NGT, in November 2024, expressed disappointment over the deteriorating condition of the Ganga in Varanasi, Modi’s Parliamentary Constituency. The tribunal, while reprimanding, even suggested that a board be installed on the river bank, stating that the Ganga water in the city is not safe for bathing”.
The Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha said that a “February 2025 report by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) found faecal coliform levels to be much higher than the safe limit of 2,500 units/100 mL. It was 11,000 units/100 mL near Shastri Bridge in Prayagraj and 7,900 units/100 mL at Sangam”.
Kharge alleged that plastic pollution had surged by 25 percent between May and June 2024, which had further increased the pollution crisis.
He alleged that in the name of Ganga Gram, the Modi government had only constructed toilets.
Slamming the Modi government, the Congress Chief stated that the Ganga is not just a river but India’s cultural and spiritual heritage, and accused the ruling dispensation of betraying its commitment to clean it.
