WORLD BANK TO HELP CLEAN INDIA’S GANGES

AZG DAILY
04-12-2009

International

The World Bank said Wednesday it will give India at least one billion
dollars to help clean up the heavily polluted holy river Ganges as
part of moves to sharply hike lending to the country, AFP reports.

The Ganges clean-up involves building modern sewage treatment,
revamping drains and other measures to improve the quality of the
sacred river which has been badly dirtied by industrial chemicals,
farm pesticides and other sewage.

"The World Bank is helping the government of India in its recently
launched program to clean and conserve the Ganga (Ganges) River with
an initial assistance of one billion dollars to be provided over the
next four-to-five years," the multilateral lender said in a statement.

India’s environment minister hailed the World Bank’s support for
cleaning up the river, known to Hindus as "the Mother Ganges."

"This is a project of enormous national importance and I am pleased
that the World Bank has come forward to assist us," Ramesh said at
a joint news conference in New Delhi with visiting World Bank chief
Robert Zoellick.

The announcement came after the finance ministry earlier Wednesday
said the World Bank was expected to triple lending this year to India
to seven billion this year for development, infrastructure and other
projects.