Unplanned development has impacted our ecosystem much more frighteningly than we can think of. Water, the source of life, has been one of the worst affected. Groundwater is depleting while rivers are drying up, not just in metros, but in small cities and rural areas too.
However, some people are doing their best to stop our water resources from depleting further, going to the extent of rejuvenating dying rivers. 2014 batch IAS officer and District Magistrate of Sambhal district in UP, Mr. Manish Bansal, is one such green warrior whose efforts not only rejuvenated a dead river but also generated employment for hundreds of people living in nearby villages.
Indian Masterminds interacted with Mr. Bansal to learn about the river rejuvenation project.
SOT RIVER REJUVENATION
In November 2022, the officer started a project to revive Sot River which was almost dead. It is a seasonal river in the Sambhal district, believed to be flowing in Sambhal, Amroha, and Bijnor districts since ancient times. About 110 km stretch of the river is in Sambhal.
However, this river was almost dead for a long time. There were no signs of existence and people occupied its downstream areas and started farming. It had become a completely flat land. About three years ago, the then DM had tried to work on the river. But due to many reasons, his efforts could not succeed.
FLOWING IN FULL CAPACITY
But, now, this river is flowing at its full capacity. Not only this, but because of the save-the-river project started by the present DM people of 71 villages of 5 blocks got employment for more than 1,71,542 man-days under MGNREGA. And, this is not all. Looking ahead to the future of the river, more than 10, 246 bamboo and other trees were planted on the banks of the river. And, 30,000 mosquito fish were freed into the river to save it from diseases.
Mr. Bansal said, “It is very important that, as DM, we take up such projects to conserve water. Not just in the cities, but in villages also, the groundwater level is going down very fast. And because people are not able to get clean drinking water, diseases spread. But, now, with ‘Jal Jeevan Mission’, we can solve such problems. From the irrigation point of view, we must rejuvenate our old rivers.”
THE PROJECT
The project undertaken in the Sot River is one of the largest rejuvenation projects in the state. Such rejuvenation projects of rivers had been carried out but not over such a long stretch of 110 km.
Mr. Bansal started work on this project in November last year. First, he held a meeting with all the concerned BDOs and SDMs of the district. The areas and other issues related to this river were understood in great detail. After that, a plan was made to start work on its rejuvenation by linking it with the MNREGA scheme.
He said, “We first looked into the land records. All the river areas were earmarked, and most of the places were occupied. We deployed a team from the revenue department, which gradually started removing all the encroachments. We formed a second team of BDOs, who made all the estimates as to where digging would have to be done to bring the river into its shape and approximately how much it would cost. After that, excavation was started.”
The excavation of the river started in the first week of December. It continued till May and the project was completed in June. This time though, due to good rainfall, there is plenty of water in the river and it has returned to its original form. It is totally in flowing nature now.
GREEN BANKS
One of the special aspects of this project is that along with the rejuvenation of the river, care has been taken to ensure greenery on its banks. That is what makes this project different. Planting of bamboo and other trees has been started on the banks of the river. This will keep the river banks safe and will also help the water to stay in the river for a longer period.
Mr. Bansal said, “So far, this project has been very successful. After the end of this rainy season, when the water level starts to go down, we will review and if there are any gaps left or any repairs need to be done, we will complete them.”
WORKING ON ANOTHER RIVER
Seeing the success of this project, the district administration has now taken the initiative to revive another river, the Mahava River, which is another seasonal river that enters the Sambhal district via Bijnor. It is a tributary of the river Ganga.
Mr. Bansal said, “We are hopeful that soon we will rejuvenate it as well. Farmers living near this river have demanded work on this project after seeing the success of the Sot River project.”
Mr. Bansal further said that they have requested the District Magistrates of Badaun and Amroha to start projects to rejuvenate this same river in their districts so that it can flow better through its entire stretch. “If there is no flow obstruction, then the future of the river will be better,” he added.
IMMEDIATE BENEFITS
Local farmers will be greatly benefited from the revival of the Sot River, as it will increase the groundwater level and will also be beneficial in irrigation.
An interesting thing about this river is that it is linked to the Madhya Ganga canal which will ensure that the excess water will flow into the river.
