Revitalization of Rivers in India Draft Policy - Isha Guru Jaggi Vasudev

Revitalization of Rivers In India
Draft Policy Recommendation
River for Life: human beings and biodiversity need the river for their
survival and growth, and to secure livelihoods.
Consequently, the recommendations are divided broadly into four
categories and are detailed as follows.
3.1. RIVER REVITALIZATION
(a) Environmental Flows: A minimum environmental flow of water
till the sea coast – enough to sustain the flora and fauna in the
ecologically sensitive zones along the river – must be mandated
for every river under the Environment Protection Act, 1986.
(b) Ecologically Sensitive Zone: The minimum lateral distance of
1-kilometer from the river should be demarcated and declared as
an ecologically sensitive zone under the Environment Protection
Act, 1986, with do’s and don’ts prescribed to protect it.
(c) Saturation Model: For any work on a river to have the desired
effect, it has to be implemented along the entire length of
the river. Farmers in the mentioned target area should be
eligible to participate in the revitalization program and access
compensation or incentives irrespective of the size of their
land-holding.
(d) Production of Quality Planting Material (QPM) by Establishing
DRAFT
Nurseries: A tree-plantation activity of this scale, along the
entire stretch of a river for hundreds of kilometers, will require
millions of QPM to ensure optimal economic returns.
(e) Declaration of Floodplains to Be Chemical-Free Zones:
According to the Government of India’s definition of a river,
“nirmal dhara”, or unpolluted flow, is compulsory. Therefore, use
of chemicals for cultivation on target areas should be prohibited,
in order to ensure good water quality in the river.
(f) Identification, Delineation, and Notification of River Lands:
The area encompassing the river and its surrounding land that is
15