IIT Roorkee confers HRED River Ganga Rejuvenation Award 2021 upon Rajiv Ranjan Mishra

NEW DELHI: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee has awarded the HRED River Ganga Rejuvenation Award 2021 to Rajiv Ranjan Mishra, executive director-general of National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG). The award is presented to those individuals who have contributed towards Ganga river rejuvenation. The award was presented to Mishra by AK Chaturvedi, director of IIT Roorkee

Rajiv Ranjan Mishra was a Mechanical Engineer graduate from IIT, Kanpur. He then became an Indian Administrative Service officer. Mishra served as the director-general of NMCG and led the Namami Gange programme since 2018.

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He has made efforts towards achieving Public-Private Partnership (PPP) in wastewater management and regarding affordable housing. He also worked for river conservation through National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD).

“Mr. Rajiv Ranjan Mishra’s contributions towards Ganga Rejuvenation are pathbreaking, manifold and sustained over a very long period of time. They are marked by his passion, personal attention, scientific approach and most importantly ability to take along people at the grassroots level as well as the political leadership. He has shaped government policy for Ganga rejuvenation in a manner that the impact is visible on the ground,” Chaturvedi said.

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Mishra said that he was happy to receive the award. “Ultimate success and sustainability can be ensured with ownership of the river and its ecosystem by the people. People River connect is a sine qua non for a rejuvenated Ganga. And to think of Re-imagining, Rejuvenating and Reconnecting with Ma Ganga, India’s longest and most revered river is a herculean task. Therefore, the scope of the mission was expanded to go beyond cleaning to holistic rejuvenation and to include improving flow and ecology with environmental flow, afforestation, tributaries clean-up, nurturing of wetlands, natural springs, redevelopment of riverfronts, sustainable agriculture and other aspects of basin management. Also, Ganga River Basin Management Plan by Consortium of IITs provided the comprehensive long term vision, thus, helping lay the foundation for Namami Gange Mission,” he said.