3. The Ganges is the most sacred river to Hindus and is also a lifeline to millions of Indians who live along its course and depend on it for their daily needs. It is worshiped as the goddess Ganga in Hinduism. It has also been important historically: many former provincial or imperial capitals (such as Patliputra, Kannauj,Kara, Kashi, Allahabad, Murshidabad, Munger, Baharampur and Kolkata) have been located on its banks. Perennial rivers such as the Ganges have been held in high regard since time immemorial. This current of acknowledgement runs through the entire subcontinent, as seen from references to the Ganges in ancient South Indian literature.

4. Scientific Importance Scientists and religious leaders have speculated on the causes of the river's apparent self-purification effect, in which water-borne bacteria such as dysentery and cholera are killed off, thus preventing large-scale epidemics. Some studies have reported that the river retains more oxygen than is typical for comparable rivers; this could be a factor leading to fewer disease agents being present in the water.

5. The Environmental Problems The Ganges was ranked among the top five most polluted rivers of the world in 2007, with fecal coliform levels in the river near Varanasi more than hundred times the official Indian government limits. Pollution threatens not only humans, but also more than 140 fish species, 90 amphibian species and the endangered Ganges river dolphin.It is filled with chemical wastes, sewage and even human and animal remains which carry major health risks by either direct bathing in the dirty water, or by drinking.

6. The condition of the Ganges Past Present

12. Ganga Action Plan (GAP) The Ganga Action Plan or GAP was a program launched by Rajiv Gandhi in April 1985 in order to reduce the pollution load on the river. The program was launched with much fanfare, but it failed to decrease the pollution level in the river, after spending 901.71 crore (approx.1010) rupees over a period of 15 years. The activities of GAP phase I initiated in 1985 were declared closed on 31 March 2000. The steering Committee of the national river conservation Authority reviewed the progress of the GAP and necessary correction on the basis of lessons learned and experiences gained from the GAP phase; 2.00 schemes have been completed under this plan. A million liters of sewage is targeted to be intercepted, diverted and treated. The Phase-II of the program was approved in stages from 1993 onwards, and included the following tributaries of Ganga: Yamuna, Gomti, Damodar and Mahananda. As of 2011, it is currently under implementation.

13. Important reasons for the failure of Ganga Action Plan-1 1.Non availability of Environmental State-of-the-Art. 2.Inappropriate Environmental Planning. 3.Establishment of non specific Sewage Treatment Plants on highly productive crop lands. 4.Shortage of authentic information on quality & quantity of waste generation, mode of disposal, possibilities for recycling, development of community treatment plants and cost effective treatment technologies. 5.Insignificant cooperation between Central, State and Local Government bodies.

14. 6.Lack of local technical expert committees for monitoring the work. 7.Least input from multidisciplinary environmental experts in policy planning of the Ganga Action Plan. 8.Short of global tender policies for formulation and execution of pollution control projects. 9.Improper mass awareness and involvement of Ganga users in different projects. 10.Lack of long term involvement of authorities to fix responsibilities for failure. 11. Least political dedication and vision to save the Ganga.