Now Reading: Pankaja Munde: Rs 2,000 crore plan to revive 54 polluted river stretches
-
01
Pankaja Munde: Rs 2,000 crore plan to revive 54 polluted river stretches
Pankaja Munde: Rs 2,000 crore plan to revive 54 polluted river stretches
Maharashtra has approved a Rs 2,000 crore programme to rejuvenate 54 polluted river stretches, the highest such count among Indian states. Environment and Climate Change Minister Pankaja Munde said the state is…
Maharashtra has approved a Rs 2,000 crore programme to rejuvenate 54 polluted river stretches, the highest such count among Indian states. Environment and Climate Change Minister Pankaja Munde said the state is setting up the Maharashtra State River Rejuvenation Authority (MSRRA) as a unified body to restore rivers, reduce contamination and manage river basins.
Speaking at the ETNow.in Business Conclave & Awards 2026, West Edition, Munde said environmental protection cannot be compromised for development, and industries must adopt sustainable practices. She stressed that her department needs closer coordination with urban development and rural development bodies to tackle pollution linked to rapid urbanisation.
Munde said the state is also preparing climate action plans for cities and promoting rural entrepreneurship to ease migration pressure on Mumbai and other major urban centres.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The creation of MSRRA brings Maharashtra in line with the Centre's National River Conservation Plan, under which state-level authorities execute restoration funded jointly by the central and state governments. Of the 54 polluted stretches, several are in industrial belts such as the Mumbai-Thane-Pune corridor, where untreated effluent and sewage have long degraded water quality. The Rs 2,000 crore outlay will need to cover sewage treatment plants, industrial discharge monitoring and riverfront management across districts. The next concrete test is whether MSRRA can secure timely clearances from the urban development department for the sewage infrastructure projects it will depend on.
Source: timesnownews.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
