Oppn slams govt for failing to stop pollution in Ganga; BJP calls it 'lies'

HARIDWAR: A war of words erupted between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state, with the former accusing the government of failing to curb pollution in the Ganga while BJP leaders alleged that the opposition was misrepresenting facts.

- HT Correspondent [e-mail]

Congress chief state spokesperson Garima Dasauni alleged that pilgrims and locals in Uttarakhand are being forced to drink polluted Ganga water. Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for calling himself a son of Ganga during election campaigning in Varanasi, Dasauni said the BJP government both at the Centre and the state-level have failed to make Ganga pollution-free.

"From the very source of Ganga at Gaumukh in Gangotri, the river is becoming polluted by the day. Sewage treatment plants have an insufficient carrying capacity of 316.87 million liters per day (MLD), while total sewage generated is 512.23 MLD. This means non-treated sewage is directly getting poured in Ganga, which is quite worrisome," Dasauni said.

The Congress spokesperson's statements come days after the Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board classified the water quality of Ganga River in Haridwar under B-category, which signifies water parameters suitable for bathing but not for drinking.

"B-category parameters involve dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, faecal coliforms and total coliforms. We carried out sampling at 8 stations or sites falling in Haridwar district. Quality of water is suitable for bathing purpose in Ganga stretch of Haridwar district," said Haridwar regional officer of the Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board, Rajendra Singh.