| The Sankat Mochan (“removal
of suffering”) Foundation (SMF) is a secular
non-profit organization dedicated to restoring
the River Ganga (Ganges) and its immediate environs
from industrial and domestic pollution. Simultaneously
one of the most sacred and most polluted rivers
in the world, the Ganges is revered by Hindus as
Mother Ganga, source of purity and eternal life.
At Varanasi, one of India’s holiest cities,
approximately 60,000 pilgrims a day dip themselves
in Ganga’s sacred water. SMF was founded
in Varanasi by Dr. Veer Bhadra Mishra, Head of
the Department of Civil Engineering at Banaras
Hindu University and Head Priest of the Sankat
Mochan Temple. Motivated by devotion to Mother
Ganga as well as environmental and public health
concerns, Mishra established the Foundation to
pursue the goal of attaining a clean and healthy
Ganga through education, non-polluting drainage
and waste treatment technology, political advocacy,
and scientific research. Drawing on science, technology
and religion to restore and protect the Ganga from
chemical pollution, sewage, and other forms of
waste, SMF reflects Mishra’s dual role as
civil engineer and priest by balancing scientific
and technological approaches to pollution control
and prevention with respect for religious beliefs
about the purifying power of Mother Ganga. Through
its Swatcha Ganga (Clean Ganga) Campaign, the SMF
has launched a number of pollution prevention initiatives
since 1983. As a result of SMF’s efforts,
the Indian government initiated the Ganga Action
Plan (GAP) in 1985 with the stated goal of cleaning
up the river by 1993. When it became clear that
that GAP Phase I was failing due to inappropriate
and poorly designed sewage treatment plants, SMF
began focusing its efforts on implementing alternative
sewage technologies. At present, major SMF programs
and initiatives include the Swatcha Ganga Research
Laboratory for monitoring the river’s water
quality; Swatcha Ganga Environmental Education
Centre, which seeks to combine ecological education
with traditional beliefs and practices; the School
Program for raising the issue of pollution in Varanasi
Schools; the Village Program to help villagers
attain clean water and protect the health of their
communities; and the Ghat Program, which promotes
care for the Ganga among the countless boatmen,
Ghat priests, and washer-people that work along
and in the river. |
| Hinduism |
India
(Varanasi) |
| 1982–Present |
Founded by Dr. Veer Bhadra Mishra
and a group of citizens and engineers from Varanasi,
the Sankat Mochan Foundation was registered as
a non-profit organization in 1982. SMF launched
its Swatcha Ganga (Clean Gages) campaign the
following year. In 1986, the Indian Government
implemented
Phase I of the Ganga Action Plan (GAP): construction
of three sewage treatment plants, pumping stations
and electric crematoriums at Varanasi. In 1992,
SMF and its United States (US) partner, Friends
of the Ganges (FOG), sponsored an international
conference
entitled, “Pollution
Control in River Cities of India: A Case Study
of Ganga at Varanasi.” That same year,
Misha was placed on the United Nations Environmental
Program’s Global 500 Roll of Honour at
United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The following year,
SMF and the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation,
established The Swatcha Ganga Research Laboratory
to document problems with GAP Phase I. In 1997,
SMF and Oswald-Green LLC submitted a detailed
report to the Indian government concerning GAP
Phase II.
In 1998, SMF, Ozwald-Green, and FOG opened the
Swatcha Ganga Environmental Center at Tulsi Ghat.
|
| In working toward its goal of a clean and healthy
Ganga, the Sankat Mochan Foundation aims to: “restore
and preserve the Ganga by alleviating its fast
deteriorating environmental condition; promote
education and health care programs for the less
privileged members of society; maintain and encourage
the age-old cultural traditions of the ancient
city of Varanasi; and propagate the literature
of Swami Tulsidas Ji.” |
Friends of the Ganges
Ozwald-Green
of Australia
Swedish Society for Nature Conservation |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
| None Listed |
Sankat Mochan Foundation
15 Tulsi Ghat
Varanasi 221 001 India
Ph/Fax: +91 542 231 4278
Email: rohit@cleanganga.com, vbmganga@satyam.net.in |
