Modi virtually chairs National Ganga Council meeting in Kolkata

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday chaired the second meeting of the National Ganga Council (NGC) meeting in Kolkata via video conferencing. The meeting was attended by the Union Minister for Jal Shakti, and other Union Ministers who are members of the council besides the Chief Ministers of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal. Instead of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav was present at the meeting. The Prime Minister attended the meeting virtually after he performed the last rites of his mother Heeraben who passed away early this morning. PM Modi also virtually inaugurated multiple projects of the Indian Railways. The National Ganga Council has been given the overall responsibility for the superintendence of pollution prevention and rejuvenation of River Ganga and its tributaries. Namami Gange Programme is an Integrated Conservation Mission, approved as a ‘Flagship Programme’ by the Central Government in June 2014 with a budget outlay of Rs 20,000 crore to accomplish the twin objectives of effective abatement of pollution, conservation and rejuvenation of the national river Ganga.