NMCG Expands Urban River Management Plans Across Ganga Basin Cities
The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), in collaboration with the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA), has achieved a significant milestone in river-centric urban planning by completing Urban River Management Plans (URMPs) for 13 cities under the Namami Gange Programme. The initiative is now being expanded to cover 60 cities across the Ganga Basin, with 27 cities under Phase-I and 33 additional cities under Phase-II, representing one of the world's largest coordinated efforts to integrate river health with urban planning.
This initiative originates from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision articulated during the December 2019 National Ganga Council meeting in Kanpur, which called for a shift from city-centric development to a river-centric approach. The URMP framework addresses urban river management across three key pillars—environmental, economic, and social—through a comprehensive ten-point agenda that includes floodplain regulation, pollution abatement, rejuvenation of wetlands and water bodies, enhancement of riparian buffers, reuse of treated water, eco-sensitive riverfront development, ensuring quality return flows, economic utilization of river resources, and sustained citizen engagement.
Phased Implementation and Geographic Coverage
Under Phase-I, supported by the World Bank, URMPs are being developed for 27 cities across Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal. These span diverse geographies from Gangotri and Rishikesh in the upper basin to Howrah, Asansol, and Durgapur in the eastern region. URMPs for 13 cities have been completed, with plans for 12 additional cities targeted for completion by March 2027 (FY 2026–27). Completed plans include cities such as Haldwani-Kathgodam, Ramnagar, Rishikesh, Gorakhpur, Shahjahanpur, Bijnor, Prayagraj, Mirzapur, Chapra, Buxar, and Gaya. The long-term vision aims to cover all 97 cities along the main stem of the Ganga.
State-Specific Implementation Strategies
In Uttarakhand, URMPs for Haldwani-Kathgodam focus on reconnecting the city with the Gaula River through riparian buffers and flood management interventions. Ramnagar's plan positions the Kosi River as part of the Corbett eco-tourism corridor through biodiversity-oriented riverfronts, avian parks, watch towers, and ecological public spaces. Rishikesh's plan focuses on rejuvenation of tributaries, wetlands, and associated river systems through wetland restoration, sewerage upgrades, and faecal sludge management.
Uttar Pradesh's URMPs emphasize flood resilience, pollution reduction, and cultural riverfront rejuvenation. Gorakhpur adopts a blue-green infrastructure approach using sponge parks, bioswales, constructed wetlands, and ecological riverfronts to address urban flooding. Shahjahanpur's strategy emphasizes rejuvenation of the Garra and Khannaut rivers through eco-friendly ghats, water quality monitoring, wastewater treatment, and public campaigns like "Meri Nadi, Mera Shahar." Bijnor adopts a district-scale ecological planning approach linked to the Haiderpur Wetland, while Prayagraj envisions rivers as "Living Heritage Corridors" integrating ecological restoration, tourism, and flood resilience.
Bihar's URMPs for Buxar, Chapra, and Gaya focus on strengthening the relationship between rivers, culture, and urban resilience. Buxar proposes an eco-sensitive and culturally vibrant riverfront with biodiversity zones, eco-parks, permeable ghat infrastructure, and canal rejuvenation through bioremediation and constructed wetlands. Chapra addresses recurrent flooding and dynamic river morphology through floodplain zoning, ecological restoration of the Tel River corridor, decentralized wastewater treatment, and rejuvenation of ponds and wetlands. Gaya focuses on restoring the hydro-ecology of the Falgu River through groundwater recharge, floodplain restoration, phytoremediation of polluted drains, and GIS-based waterbody monitoring.
Implementation and Pilot Projects
The initiative has progressed beyond planning to on-ground implementation, with NMCG and NIUA promoting selected interventions through nature-based solutions, ecological restoration, innovative technologies, and community-centric approaches. Kanpur has emerged as a leading example, with pilot interventions focusing on the rejuvenation of the COD (Central Ordnance Depot) Drain through ecological restoration measures and the rejuvenation of urban water bodies using Lake Assessment and Monitoring Analysis System (LAMAS) technology.
To accelerate implementation, the Performance Based Incentive Grant (PBIG) initiative under the NMCG-World Bank partnership serves as a mechanism to encourage Urban Local Bodies to undertake priority interventions identified through URMPs. NMCG is supporting the implementation of select marquee projects including development of riparian buffers, preparation of Faecal Sludge and Septage Management (FSSM) plans, restoration of water bodies and wetlands, eco-friendly riverfront development, and technology-enabled applications for river management.
The initiative envisions expanding the URMP framework beyond the Ganga Basin to other river systems across India to institutionalize river-sensitive urban planning as a national model, enabling cities to adopt integrated, basin-based approaches for sustainable development.