Public sector company NBCC (India) is set to kickstart projects aimed at cleaning the Ganga in Bihar, a senior official of the company said.
“The government has approved financial proposals for a few projects. We will start doing engineering works etc very soon,” NBCC (India) CMD AK Mittal told Business Line .
In December last year, the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation hired NBCC to carry out the feasibility study and conditional assessment of the river for entry-level activities in Bihar.
Under the project, NBCC will undertake cleaning of debris, construction of new ghats, modernisation of existing ghats, repair, cleaning of the river surface, construction of crematorium and public facilities such as toilets. It will also set up a village drainage system in order to curb direct discharge into the river.
“Detailed project reports have been approved the Ministry of Water Resources for three towns. We expect to begin work there by June-end,” Nilesh Shah, Executive Director, NBCC, said.
The company is also awaiting approval for another 10 towns by the Ministry, Shah added. In total, NBCC will carry out projects across 19 towns in Bihar. According to estimates, the project is expected to fetch the company upwards of ₹600 crore.
In May last year, the Cabinet had approved the ‘Namami Gange’ programme, which integrates the efforts to clean and protect the river in a comprehensive manner. The programme has a budget outlay of ₹20,000 crore for the next five years.