India Water Impact Summit-2018 to be held from today

Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Shri Nitin Gadkari will inaugurate India Water Impact Summit 2018, being jointly organized by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) and the Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (cGanga) from 5-7 December 2018 in New Delhi.

The India Water Impact Summit is an annual event where stakeholders get together to discuss, debate and develop model solutions for some of the biggest water related problems in the country. The discussions this year will be on rejuvenation of the Ganga River Basin. There will be multi-country dialogue on the subject, with showcasing of technological innovations, research, policy frameworks and funding models from India and abroad. A number of Indian Central Government Ministries as well as all key decision makers responsible for delivering the rejuvenation of the Ganga will also be present at the Summit.

The efforts may take various forms including (but not limited to): data collection (sensors, LIDAR, modelling etc), hydrology, e-flows, agriculture, waste water and more.

The Summit will focus on three key aspects:

• Spotlight on 5 states: Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi and Bihar. The objective is to showcase the efforts and works going on within the respective states.
• Ganga Financing Forum: The 2018 Summit also introduces the inaugural Ganga Financing Forum that will bring a number of institutions to a common knowledge, information and partnership platform. The Hybrid Annuity Model has redefined the economic landscape of water and waste-water treatment in India. All tenders have been successfully bid out and financial closures being achieved. Additionally, the Government is also now encouraging development of smaller decentralised waste water treatment projects. The Financing Forum will bring together financial institutions and investors interested in Namami Gange programmes.
• Technology and Innovation: Implementation of the pilot/demonstration programme known as the Environment Technology Verification (ETV) process. This will provide an opportunity to technology and innovation companies from around the world to showcase their solutions for addressing the problems prevalent in the river basin.

Nearly 200 domestic and international participants from nearly 15 countries and more than 50 Central, State and Municipal Government representatives are likely to participate in the summit. There will be sessions on Afforestation and Biodiversity, Urban River/Water Management Plans, Creating a Global Ecosystem for financing the Ganga Rejuvenation Programme and tapping into global capital markets for long term project finance.