Ujjain : Despite spending Rs 450 crore on the Narmada-Kshipra Link Project, Rs 300 crore on Khan River Diversion Project and about Rs 25 crore on stopping and diverting drains and severe lines of Ujjain, river Kshipra is still searching for its purification. At least half dozen drains are yet mixing in the river till today, which exposes the tall claims of the government and Simhastha authorities that mixing of all drains in to the river has been totally stopped.
After FREE PRESS launched an initiative for the rejuvenation of Kshipra in September 2015 in wake of Simhastha-2016, this issue became the focal point of the Mahakumbh’s preparations. Not only the social organizations came forward for the cleansing of the ghats and river; but the seer community also started exerting pressure for the purification of river. It forced the government and the Simhastha authorities to focus their attention on the issue and they all of a sudden initiated various steps to cleanse the major bathing ghats and ensure purity of the river water. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan also expressed deep concern over the condition of river Kshipra and announced to send one each ministerial colleague on every Sunday to take part in the ‘Shramdaan Abhiyan’. Besides, the District Minister In-charge Bhupendra Singh and authorities like Divisional Commissioner Ravindra Pastor and Mela Officer Avinash Lavania very systematically and aggressively made claims in public domain that no drain is mixing in the river Kshipra.
But, Free Press team found all such efforts and claims as hollow. On visiting the ghats between Ram Ghat and Mangalnath Ghat, at least half dozen drains were found openly mixing in the river Kshipra. It included Rinmukteshwar Nala, Gonsa Nala, Mojamkhedi Nala. Kaal Bhairav Nala, etc. Residents of these areas as well as farmers informed that either concerned authorities know nothing about such drains or they have been cheating the people by claiming that they have stopped mixing of all drains into the river Kshipra. “It appears that the officials do not consider ghats other than Ram Ghat, Dutta Akhada Ghat, Narsing Ghat, Bhukhi Mata Ghat, Gau Ghat and Triveni Ghat as a ghat for religious baths,” argued a young villager. He informed that new river bridges and roads have been constructed on the ‘ignored’ ghats and sides of the river so as to sustain the crowd pressure during peak days of the Simhastha; but authorities consider that people coming through these areas would not take bath at such places and instead go to the ‘prime’ ghats.
