Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, claimed on Tuesday that the water quality in Prayagraj during the current MahaKumbh was suitable for aachman, or the ritual of drinking holy water.
For “spreading propaganda” that the Sangam water was unsafe for bathing, the Uttar Pradesh chief minister blasted the opposition. CM Adityanath’s statement coincides with a controversy over a Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report that revealed dangerously high concentrations of “faecal coliform” germs in the Prayagraj Ganga.
Speaking in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, CM Adityanath said over 56.25 crore devotees have already taken a dip during Mahakumbh. According to Yogi Adityanath, who cited a report from the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPCB), the Ganga’s dissolved oxygen (DO) level has improved from 5 mg/litre to about 9 mg/litre, while the biological oxygen demand (BOD) level was less than 3 mg/litre. Faecal coliform, a key indicator of sewage contamination, should be within 2,500 units per 100 ml, as per the CPCB.
Faecal coliform and biochemical oxygen demand levels in Sangam water did not exceed the bathing criterion during monitoring conducted in the second week of January, according to a report submitted by the CPCB on Monday in accordance with the December directive. On Monday, the NGT bench recorded the CPCB’s report and observed that the UPPCB had failed to submit an action taken report in accordance with its decision from December 23.
The CPCB report on water quality in the Ganga at Kumbh had said, “River water quality was not conforming with the primary water quality for bathing with respect to faecal coliform at all the monitored locations on various occasions. A huge number of people (are) taking a bath at Prayagraj during MahaKumbh Mela in the river, including auspicious bathing days, which eventually leads to an increase in faecal concentration.” The Uttar Pradesh government and the CPCB were instructed in a December directive to make sure the Ganga and Yamuna rivers’ water quality was suitable for drinking and bathing during the Kumbh.
Adityanath also criticized the opposition for trying to discredit the Mahakumbh in his speech to the UP Assembly, citing statements made by Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal, and Lalu Prasad Yadav. “The Samajwadi Party president asked what was the need to spend money on the Maha Kumbh. Lalu Yadav called the Kumbh ‘faltu’. Another partner of the SP said the Maha Kumbh had become the ‘Mrityu Kumbh’. If organising events related to the Sanatana Dharma is a crime, then our government will keep committing that crime,” he said. Uttar Pradesh Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya also said, “Mamata Banerjee’s statement is against the Hindus and Maha Kumbh. It is a disrespect to those who have faith in Indian culture. They should apologise to everyone for this.”
The Uttar Pradesh government and the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) were chastised by the National Green Tribunal on Wednesday for failing to provide sufficient information on fecal coliform and other water quality criteria, like oxygen levels, in the Ganga river near Prayagraj. It gave the state administration one week to document the most recent water quality analysis findings from several river locations at the Prayagraj Maha Kumbh Mela site.
