GREENLIGHTS FOR NATIONAL MISSION FOR CLEAN GANGA

Digital twin of Ganga has been sanctioned under the Centre of Excellence at IIT (Delhi) to assist data-driven decision making in the National Mission for Clean Ganga and other agencies of Government. Hydrological modelling, assessment of groundwater stress, identification of hotspots, scenario analysis, and monitoring of basin water resources are at the core of this project, which helps in ensuring objectivity and transparency in the decision-making process. Use of artificial intelligence, mathematical simulations and planning tools have been envisaged in the project concept.

Hybrid Annuity based Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects under the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) introduce an innovative financing approach for sewerage infrastructure. The key objective is to link payments to the actual performance of sewage treatment plants (STPs). NMCG has sanctioned a project for interception and diversion (I&D) and STP for pollution abatement of river Mahananda in Siliguri Municipal Town, West Bengal at an estimated cost of Rs 361.86 crores under hybrid annuity PPP mode.

Traditionally, there was a concern that during the Operation and Maintenance (O&M) phase, private operators paid less attention to proper O&M because monthly payments were relatively small compared to the larger payments received during the construction phase. This sometimes resulted in non-compliances and poor operational responsiveness.
The information was provided by THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.(UPDATED ON 8TH DEC 2025)