The United Nations has recognised Namami Gange initiative to rejuvenate River Ganga as one of the top 10 World Restoration Flagships to revive the natural world.
The award was received by Namani Gange director general at a function in the 15th Conference of Parties (COP15) to the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) in Montreal, Canada on 14 December, said a Jal Shakti Ministry release.
Namami Gange was selected from over 150 such initiatives from 70 countries across the globe. The Programme was started in 2014 after Prime Minister Narendra Modi recognised the need to rejuvenate the holy river and committed over $5 billion for its cleanliness.
The Top 10 World Restoration Flagships were selected under the banner of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a global movement coordinated by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The movement is designed to prevent and reverse the degradation of natural spaces across the planet.
The recognised initiatives, including Namami Gange, will now be eligible to receive UN support, funding or technical expertise. The 10 flagships together aim to restore more than 68 million hectares − an area bigger than Myanmar, France or Somalia − and create nearly 15 million jobs.
