PM Modi has forgotten his guarantee of cleaning Ganga, his govt only cheated Maa Ganga: Kharge
New Delhi: Hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered prayers at the winter abode of Goddess Ganga in Uttarakhand, Congress chief Mallikarjur Kharge took a swipe at him on Thursday, saying the government has only "cheated" 'Maa Ganga' in the name of cleaning the river.
Modi offered prayers at Mukhwa temple in Uttarkashi district in the morning. Mukhwa is located on the way to the Gangotri temple dedicated to Goddess Ganga. Her idol is moved to Mukhwa temple from Gangotri Dham every year after the closure of its gates for winter.
In a post in Hindi on X, Kharge said, "Modi Ji had stated that 'Maa Ganga had called him' but the truth is that he has 'forgotten' his guarantee of cleaning the Ganga!"
The Namami Gange scheme was launched nearly 11 years ago under which Rs 42,500 crore was to be used by March 2026, he said. "But the answers to questions in Parliament show that only Rs 19,271 crore have been spent till December 2024."
"That is, the Modi government has not spent 55 per cent of the funds of the Namami Gange scheme. Why so much indifference towards Maa Ganga?" Kharge posed.
Addressing a rally in Harsil after praying at the Mukhwa temple, the prime minister said he feels blessed to visit Goddess Ganga's winter abode. "I think Maa Ganga has adopted me. It is her blessings that took me to Kashi and gave me an opportunity to serve the people," he said.
Hitting out at Modi over the issue of cleaning the Ganga, Kharge said, "In 2015, Modi ji had urged our NRI friends to contribute to the Clean Ganga Fund. Rs 876 crore has been donated to this fund till March 2024, but 56.7 per cent of it has not been used yet. Around 53 per cent of this fund has been donated by government undertakings."
A November 2024 reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha shows that 38 per cent of Namami Gange projects are still pending, the Congress president pointed out.
He claimed 82 per cent of the total allocated funds were to be spent to build Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) but 39 per cent of those have still not been completed. Those that are completed are not even operational, Kharge claimed.
Referring to a reply given by the government in Rajya Sabha, he said that in Uttar Pradesh 75 per cent of the drains that were supposed to go to STPs have been discharging their effluents directly into the Ganga.
Asserting that 3513.16 MLD sewage was being dumped into the river, Kahrge said, "Rules have not been followed in 97 per cent of the STPs. (November 2024)."
"Bihar -- 46 per cent of STPs are not operational; rest do not meet faecal coliform levels (October 2024). West Bengal: 40 STPs not functional; 95 per cent do not meet NGT norms; 76.16 per cent do not comply with MoEF norms (March 2024)," he said.
In November 2024, the National Green Tribunal expressed strong displeasure over the administration's "failure" to maintain the cleanliness of the Ganga in Varanasi, Modi's parliamentary constituency, the Congress chief said.
"While reprimanding, the tribunal even suggested that a board be installed on the river bank, stating that the Ganga water in the city is not safe for bathing.
"The latest report of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) released in February 2025 found faecal coliform levels to be much higher than the safe limit of 2,500 units/100 ml. It was 11,000 units/100 ml near Shastri Bridge in Prayagraj and 7,900 units/100 ml at Sangam," Kharge said.
He pointed out that according to another research, the transparency of Ganga water has decreased to only 5 per cent due to the increase in solid waste, a sign of serious pollution.
Karge further said that plastic pollution in Ganga increased by 25 per cent between May and June 2024, which further aggravated the pollution crisis.
"In the name of Ganga Gram, the Modi government has only constructed toilets. Afforestation of 1,34,106 hectares along the Ganga in five states was to be done and the cost of it was Rs 2,294 crore. But till 2022, 78 per cent of the afforestation was not done and 85 per cent of the funds were not used, an RTI has revealed," he said.
"Ganga is life-giving. It is India's cultural and spiritual heritage, but the Modi government has only cheated 'Maa Ganga' in the name of cleaning the river," Kharge added.
