Tag: Clean Ganga

Studying Plastic Pollution in the Ganga with National Geographic

Ganga, the life source of Northern and Eastern India is a prominent area of study by researchers from diverse disciplines, a key among them is the environment. In 2019, the National Geographic Society organized the expedition “Sea to Source: Ganges” to scientifically document plastic waste in the Ganges watershed and support holistic and inclusive solutions. A proud partner in this women scientists-led expedition was IIT Kharagpur along with the Isabela Foundation, University of Dhaka, the Wildlife Institute of India, and Wild Team Bangladesh.

Researchers and students from an environment-focused group at the Dept. of Civil Engineering, IIT Kharagpur participated in this transboundary expedition. The group was involved in estimating the mismanaged plastic quantities from municipal solid waste all along the river in India and come up with potential solutions and improvements in waste management systems to avoid the leakages of plastic waste from land to the river.

Talking about their role in the study-based expedition, Prof. Brajesh Dubey who heads this group at IIT Kharagpur said, “We carried out the waste characterization from the city/town dumpsite waste samples, as well as the samples collected along the river from Rishikesh to Howrah. It helped in estimating the extent of mismanaged plastics in the waste, the type of plastics present in the waste and the estimation of the fraction of mismanaged waste plastics getting into the river Ganga. A model is also being developed using the field data to have a realistic estimation of the plastic pollution transport from land to river and eventually to the ocean.”

The IIT research group also performed a photographic survey of waste management practices and issues for each city/town. Further, they held and discussions with city officials on waste management plans, identification of infrastructure gaps for the city/town and suggestions for improvement in the implementation of the solutions for better plastic waste management.  The solutions proposed include the proper waste collection in segregation mode, capacity building in terms of infrastructure development as well as skill improvement of manpower involved in waste management practices at ULB levels.  The research group is in touch with several ULBs for the improvement of their waste management infrastructure. 

While the expedition was carried out from May to December 2019, the study was carried out till February 2021. The report has been recently made public by the National Geographic Society on their blog. Read More

Photo by Sara Hylton.

Times of India

Tech Mission for Clean Ganga

IIT Kharagpur has geared up with a large array of projects for the Ganga Utsav organized by the National Mission for Clean Ganga from November 2-4, 2020. The Institute which is working closely with the Govt. of India in this project, has taken pioneering initiatives in areas such as wastewater management, industrial pollution control and drainage into the river system, recycling of water, water audits.

Talking about the initiatives, Prof. Nirjhar Dhang, head, Dept. of Civil Engineering at IIT Kharagpur remarked, “We have extended technical support to the nearby industries in the West Bengal and Jharkhand to address challenges related to effluent treatment plants, conducting water audits, and suggesting solutions for efficient and economical wastewater treatment. We have been regularly participating in the inspection of Gross Polluting Industries along the river Ganga. Our work has led to the development of technologies that use wastewater as a resource and recover energy and other value-added products from it rather than treating it.”

Prof. A. K. Gupta, Prof. M. M. Ghangrekar, Prof. B. K. Dubey of Environmental Engineering Section and Prof. Dhurbajyoti Sen of Hydraulic and Water Resources Engineering Section are mainly involved with these type of works.

Prof. Dhang cited two innovations led by the Prof. Ghangrekar, Aditya Choubey Centre for Re-Water Research which houses an operational sewage treatment plant and the bioelectric toilet which can reuse wastewater in the toilet to generate electricity and recycle the water. Can such water treatment help reduce industrial wastewater pollution of the River Ganga?

Director Prof. Virendra K Tewari is positive that such innovations if integrated with the industrial drainage system can make way for a cleaner Ganga. He said, “We use the Ganga water in our daily lives and rituals in the truest sense of ‘Jal hi jeevan hai’, hence it is our collective responsibility to follow a certain discipline both at industry and individual levels.”

He expressed delight in how the quality of the water has improved over the past few months to the extent that aquatic animals which are usually found in the lower stretches of the river were traced upstream close to busy urban areas.

“We have the capability to keep it that way with self-discipline and right use of technology to keep the water this way and that would be the true worship of the river which is deemed holiest by the people of India.”

He further emphasized the far-reaching impact of water on human health.

“Ganga Utsav is not a festival but an awareness drive to sensitize us about the Ganga water and I thank the Govt. of India for taking this challenge from the front,” he opined.

Some of the possible initiatives which have been proposed by IIT Kharagpur towards achieving this goal include, encouraging the public to use clay and natural colors to make idols and immerse them in artificial drums, developing online sensor-based monitoring of discharges from industries, creating a centralized monitoring system of water quality of Ganga and its tributaries, drone survey of strategic points of Ganga, such as places of idol immersion, discharge points of industries or municipally treated effluents.

Further, the water experts at the Institute have also recommended the introduction of more stringent standards and extensive vigilance through automated systems. They also suggested upgradation of existing technologies by the research institutes and involvement of science and engineering colleges for monitoring the allocated stretch of river. 

“While Industries should promote Zero Liquid Discharge, the real progress through product and process would have to happen at our end, i.e. technological institutions and the implementation has to be done at a social scale involving all citizens of India connected with the river system and its tributaries. The best way, I would say, is to start at our own localities through civic bodies, self-help groups and develop habits, restructure and evolve our cultural ecosystem to suit well the demands of maintaining a healthy water system,” said Prof. Tewari.

Giving a call to the industrial sector, he added, “At IIT Kharagpur we are ready with several socially and industrially scalable technologies. We are looking forward to industrial tie-ups either through commercialization or as corporate social responsibility projects.”