Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti has said that a meeting of technocrats, saints, environmentalists and NGOs has been called on 5th of next month for consultations on Ganga Rejuvenation Programme. Speaking as the chief guest at a National Conference on Preserving Rivers in India held here today, she said parameters set for Ganga will also be applicable to other major rivers of the country. The Minister said, “There won’t be any compromise on the free flow and purity of the rivers. We will take people along in this initiative.” She was of the opinion that Ganga Rejuvenation Programme of India will set an example for other countries to follow. Ms. Bharti said “In India faith and development can go together.”
Uma Bharti said there won’t be any shortage of funds for Ganga Rejuvenation Programme. Private sector has also offered its help in this task. Collaborations from other countries will also be considered. Refereeing to the doubts expressed by a section of the environmentalists on the inter linking of the rivers the Minister said, “We will ensure that only those rivers are interlinked which will not harm our eco-system.” The Minister said her Ministry is not opposed to power projects on rivers but at the same time it has to be ensured that main river is never dry during any point of the year. She expressed the hope that the group of secretaries set up to draw an action plan for Ganga will come out with its report very soon.