4th India Water Impact Summit

4th India Water Impact Summit
Question: Where did the 4th India Water Impact Summit take place from 5 to 7 December 2019?
(a) Devprayag
(b) Haridwar
(c) Varanasi
(d) New Delhi
Answer: (d)
Related facts:
  • The Ministry of Jal Shakti and the Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (cGanga) led by IIT-Kanpur organised the fourth India Water Impact Summit in New Delhi, which discussed water-related issues and steps taken to save the planet’s most precious resource.
  • The event, which was held here from December 5 to 7 2019 at the Vigyan Bhawan, was inaugurated by Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.
  • Reports on ‘Ambassadors’ Meet’, ‘River Restoration and Conservation – A Concise Manual and Guide’, as well as documents on ‘Ganga Hubs’ developed so far were released by the Ministry of Jal Shakti.

Major highlights of the summit:

  • The summit focused on integrated management of water resources in rural and urban areas, and experts from various fields discussed various water-related issues.
  • ‘Valuing Water – Transforming Ganga’ was the theme of this year’s summit.
  • An important objective of the summit was bringing together global financial investors and institutions to focus on water impact in smart cities.
  • “European Union (EU) countries, Israel, Ghana and other nations are present. 10 MoUs related to technologies were also exchanged.
  • Ambassadors and diplomatic representatives of the EU member states also participated in the summit. They talked about the importance of water to their respective nations and discussed collaboration with India.
  • As water security is a global issue, the NMCG has been taking a global call to action to invite countries from around the world to save the most precious resource on the planet.

Major projects of cleaning water:

  • There has been a massive improvement in the Clean Ganga Mission during the last five years.
  • Recently, a massive river rafting expedition called ‘Ganga Aamantran Abhiyan’ was launched from Devprayag on 10th October, 2019. The expedition covered around 2,500 KM length of the Ganga during its 34-day journey till Ganga Sagar in West Bengal.
  • Quality of water in the Ganga has improved tremendously in the last five years. Five years earlier, only tens of Gangetic dolphins were sighted, but this time they have observed more than 2,000 dolphins and all other aquatic life has improved.
  • The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval for establishment of the Clean Ganga Fund (CGF).
  • The Jal Shakti Minister said the approach in Namami Gange for ensuring Aviral Dhara or improving flows is comprehensive.
  • The role of academic institutions including IITs, NITs, NEERI etc from India and the European Union, Germany, Denmark, Israel, Japan and Canada for Technology Collaboration Agreements with c-Ganga (Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies) in cleaning Ganga was lauded in the summit.
  • Under the first draft of the Ganga River Basin Management Plan (GRBMP) submitted by a consortium of IITs in 2015, projects for liquid pollution abatement in Ganga river basin have already been sanctioned and are at various stages of implementation and more of such projects will come for the tributaries for the Ganga rivers as well.
  • India holds only about 4% of global freshwater compared to around 18% of its population and an equivalent percentage of livestock population.
  • It was mentioned that Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), like the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), will be completed within the stipulated five year period by 2024.

Links:

https://aninews.in/news/national/general-news/nmcg-organises-4th-india-water-impact-summit-2019-in-delhi20191207195944/

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1595225