Newsletter No. 65;
IRBMS
the CPCB he was selected as its first Member
Special Feature:-
DR. G.D. AGARWAL The Man Who
Sacrificed His Life for River Ganga
Secretary. He went to serve in the previous UPA
Government.
National
Ganga
River
Basin
Authority – but he resigned later on citing the
The sad demise of Dr. G.D. Agarwal who led an 111 Body’s Inability to get anything done. Over the
days fasting for the protection of Holy River Ganga past four decades, his focus has been to protect the
from acute pollution proves once again that govt. “Abiral Dharra” (uninterrupted flow) of Ganga,
does not care for the overall environment of the which he believed was not only critical for the
country revered river’s survival, but the entire basin it served.
environmentalist. Thus former professor from IIT, Following years of professional life and academic
Kanpur a true lover and savior of River Ganga, a pursuit, Agrawal turned to a life of Hindu
Gandhian and a devout Hindu passed away on asceticism, calling himself Swami Gyan Swaroop
October 11, 2018 unnoticed by the Indian Society in Sanand.
general and neglected by the Govt. He fought all During his years of activism Dr. Agrawal sat
his life to save River Ganga for the nation. He had through
conveyed his wish to the present Govt. that he construction of many dam projects, which has
would fast up to death until parliament passed the sedimentation in the river, resulting in a greater
Ganga Protection Management Act. And unless spate of flooding.
significant suggested steps are taken towards His protest for construction of dams brought a
reviving the Ganga’s uninterrupted flow. A day success when the UPA Govt. accepted to his
before he died, he refused to accept water and demands end declared 100 km., stretch between
requested those by his side to dislodge his Gomukh to Uttarkashi as Bhagirathi Ecosystem
intravenous drips. Fearing public related issues the zone. But Dr. Agarwal resigned from National
D.M. of Haridwar had the Gandhian Shifted from Ganga
his ashram in Kankha to AIIM Hospital in frustration. Things have not changed since 2011
Rishikesh and Dr. Agrawal passed away on the Ganga Rejuvenation Project was supposed to be a
following day. significant point of action for the current NDA
Born into a farmer’s family in Muzaffarnagar in Govt. there has not been any progress so far. In his
U.P. Dr. Agarwal was a CE graduate from IIT opinion Ganga Protection Management Bill left too
Roorkie. He did his Ph.D. from University of much authority in the hands of Ministers and
and
also
for
its
most
multiple
River Basin
protests
challenging
Authority due
to
the
utter
Berkley, California. When govt. of India instituted
9
Integrated River Basin Management Society