IC-IMPACTS Helps Clean the Ganga River with New Partnership

IC-IMPACTS Helps Clean the Ganga River with New Partnership

October 15, 2014 – Delhi, India

IC-IMPACTS is proud to announce that the Centre has partnered with the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) to help clean the Ganga River in India.  The Ganga River is the third largest river in the world and is the life source for over 450 million people that live along it.  Unfortunately, issues involving raw sewage, high levels of bacteria and industrial wastewater have severely contaminated the water quality of the Ganga River.  IC-IMPACTS and NMCG will be collaborating in the areas of water monitoring, alternative wastewater treatment, and industrial effluent treatment to reduce the high level of contaminants in the River.

IC-IMPACTS and NMCG have previously worked together when they co-hosted a water management workshop in Delhi earlier this year.  The workshop proved to be a great success with members of the scientific, industrial, government and financial communities in attendance.  The workshop also led to the creation of a detailed action plan outlining collaborative and innovative solutions to better manage the Ganga River.

“After working with NMCG to jointly host a successful workshop, we’re very excited about continuing to work with NMCG to help clean the Ganga River,” says IC-IMPACTS CEO and Scientific Director, Dr. Nemy Banthia. “This partnership will significantly better the livelihood of millions of people who depend on the Ganga River on a daily basis.”

Recently elected Prime Minister Narinder Modi has made cleaning the Ganga River a top priority in his agenda.  The Indian government has taken a strong stance against industrial polluters and is working to implement a “zero liquid discharge” mandate where industries must recycle and re-use any water consumed in industrial processes.

The Honourable Ed Fast, Canadian Minister of International Trade, was present in Delhi, India as IC-IMPACTS CEO Nemy Banthia formally signed the agreement.  This agreement is the first step in a significant partnership between Canada and India that is aimed at developing innovative solutions to help to better manage the Ganga River.

Innovative technologies that stem from this partnership will be applied within a community or industrial context and will show measurable improvements in water quality.  In addition to scientific collaboration, IC-IMPACTS and NMCG have outlined a plan to further this partnership through joint calls for proposals, annual workshops, graduate student exchanges, knowledge sharing and technological demonstrations on the Ganga River.

“Clean water is a fundamental necessity for human health and Canada has cutting edge technology that can be used to help improve water quality for the people in India,” said John Baird, Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs. “We look forward to showcasing our water technology expertise in the Ganga River Rejuvenation project.”