Why in news?
- The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) — the arm of the Water Ministry tasked with directing the ₹20,000 crore clean-up of the Ganga — and the Central Pollution Control Board are expected to find out if the lockdown had a measurable impact on the water quality of the Ganga and Yamuna, rivers that have a history of battling pollution.
- Water samples have been collected from Delhi (Yamuna) and all Ganga basin States, and are in the process of being analysed. While this was also part of the routine water quality monitoring in the river, there was a “special focus” on the impact of lockdown.
- Measuring the degree of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and ammonium nitrate would point to whether the lockdown has had an impact. Effluents from industries as well as sewage discharge would impact COD levels.
National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG)
The government had set up the Clean Ganga Fund in 2014 – Using the funded money to finance NMCG (National Mission for Clean Ganga 2011), cleaning the river, setting up Waste Treatment Plants, Conservation of river biodiversity and related R&D projects.
Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)
- The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) of India is a statutory organisation under the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).
- It was established in 1974
under the Water (Prevention and Control of pollution) Act, 1974.
CPCB is also entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981. - It serves as a field formation and also provides technical services to the Ministry of Environment and Forests under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
- It Co-ordinates the activities of the State Pollution Control Boards by providing technical assistance and guidance and also resolves disputes among them.
- It is the apex organisation in country in the field of pollution control, as a technical wing of MoEF
