Sir

Today the cleaning of Ganges has become one of top most priority. The holy river is no longer holy and pure, it has been polluted.

But most of us never believe that Ganga is polluted; it is seen as sacred river and worshiped as Goddess.  However, pollution has been an old and continuous process.

Rapid population growth, urbanization,and industrial development have raised the levels of domestic as well as industrial pollutants and all our sewage water, domestic waste, industrial waste and religious wastes go into the Ganges. Everyday tones of wastes are released into it. Even dead bodies float into it.

The marine life has come into danger and one of the best example is Ganga Dolphins are into crisis also it is posing significant threats to human health and the environment.

A number of initiatives have been undertaken to clean the river; even Narendra Modi came to power with the promise of cleaning the Ganges but failed to deliver the desired results.

Also few days back in BBC news I came across a news story of a 26-year-old computer science dropout from Kerala state, Atmabodhanand was on the 40^th day of a fast.

He spends his days lying under a blanket on a bed beneath a mango tree. While in night he moves inside the spartan quarters and sleeps. This is not the first time that a person is fasting for cleaning Ganges but many more have died doing this.

In my opinion fasting cannot clean the Ganges but can put pressure on the Government. But government alone cannot do anything. Real solutions require shared responsibility between the state and the people. It is time to prioritize citizen engagement. So, we have to come together for citizen participation and we have to mend our ways. We also need more education and awareness on the health effects of pollution, as well as the causes of pollution.

Yours truly

Seema Kumari

  Bihar, Ganges, India, Patna, water pollution