Ganga, Yamuna need help

Nothing is as symbolic of the Indian ethos than two rivers, the Ganga and the Yamuna. Religious importance aside, they have been the cradles of the civilization we are so proud of. They facilitated agriculture and settlements which went on to be big empires. Their waters were used for life functions ranging from births to deaths. Besides of course myriad details like bathing, collecting water, washing etc. With the coming of the industry, these two iconic rivers have become sewers.
During my stay in Delhi, I passed by the Yamuna everyday. The sight of the river often transported me to the time when she thrived. I thought of all the people who must have depended on her over the centuries, looked at the river banks and wondered what these places must have looked like all those years ago…This was followed by sadness at the plight of the river today. Parts of it look like the nullah that flows across Mohali, where I live now. I do feel happy about industrialization and development, but cannot help feeling that the price has been too dear.
Both the Ganga and Yamuna are in desperate need of help. Again, religious significance apart, the rivers of a country are the bedrocks of its culture. Abusing them does not augur well for the country and its people. Are we so drunk on power and wealth that we cannot see we are still dependent on these rivers? They are still great reservoirs of energy, which we need badly. Millions of our people do not have access to electricity and basic amenities of life. We can tap these two great resources like our ancestors have been doing.
Respect is not about singing aartis on the river banks and throwing in offerings (which only contaminate the waters further). We need to understand that these rivers, that are being used as sewers, hold the key to a better tomorrow.
On the brighter side, there are many who already understand that. The IITs have set an example by initiating the Ganga Basin Management Plan. This ambitious project of IIT Kanpur seeks to enlist the other IITs and clean up the Ganga at a cost of nearly Rs 40,000 crore. Several NGOs are also engaged in cleaning the rivers of the unsavory symbols of ritualism sans awareness. These include clay idols, poly bags, corpses et al.
We need sewage treatment plants where both industrial and domestic waste can be treated, we need to ban certain rituals, though that step can meet stiff opposition, defecation here should be banned, dumping of solid waste into the river should be prohibited and trees should be planted along the banks.
People should also pitch in along with scientists to rescue the rivers. In that context, their religious significance can be a hindrance as well as an advantage. So people need to be made aware of how rituals like dumping of half burnt corpses into the Ganga can ruin them.
The sorry state of the rivers often led the government to consider taking help from foreign companies to clean them up. While I am all for global brotherhood, I still feel we have the capability to clean up our own mess.