The Union Jal Shakthi Minister, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat thanked the Isha Founder, Sadhguru for his policy recommendations, for the Rally for Rivers Project and stated that the policies were in line with the project.
Coimbatore: The Union Jal Shakthi Minister, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat thanked the Isha Founder, Sadhguru for his policy recommendations, for the Rall for Rivers Project and stated that the policies were in line with the project.
In response to Sadhguru’s congratulatory message on the Government’s initiative to rejuvenate 13 major rivers in the country, Union Jal Shakti Minister Shri. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, said, “Thank you, @SadhguruJV. The recommendations in the DPRs are aligned with the policy recommendations of @rallyforrivers." He added that Sadhguru's vision, guidance and all-inclusive approach towards ecology are an inspiration.
In a major boost to the on-ground efforts of the Rally for Rivers (RfR) Movement, spearheaded by Sadhguru, Founder-Isha Foundation, the Central government announced that it would undertake the rejuvenation of 13 major rivers in the country, based on the recommendations of the RfR Policy Recommendations document.
Validating the science of the RfR model, the DPRs which have been prepared by subject matter experts from the Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education (ICFRE), Dehradun, are almost symmetrically aligned to the RfR policy recommendations. This is expected to silence critics who dismissed the model as “unscientific.”
Welcoming the Centre’s decision, Sadhguru tweeted, “Congratulations, Hon’ble Ministers on this most timely & welcome initiative to #RallyforRivers- treasures that must be revitalized & restored to their full glory. Forestry interventions will ensure our rivers remain perennial. Best Wishes & Blessings.”
Acknowledging Sadhguru’s message, Shri. Bhupender Yadav tweeted: “With your blessings Shri @SadhguruJV ji, the govt led by PM Shri @narendramodi ji will leave no stone unturned in maintaining the golden mean between development and environment.”
It was five years ago in 2017 that Sadhguru launched the planet’s largest ecological campaign, Rally for Rivers- to call attention to the state of India’s dying rivers. It garnered the support of 162 million people. Sadhguru had submitted a Draft Policy Recommendations document for river revitalization to Prime Minister Narendra Modi which was accepted as national policy.
The RfR Governing Board expressed jubilation at the Centre’s decision. The Board oversees ground implementation of Cauvery Calling movement while also giving direction to the Movement’s goals.
Dr. Justice Arijit Pasayat, Former Judge, Supreme Court of India and RfR Board Member said that “it is imperative that we protect environment and natural resources” for the survival of the human race.
Terming it a fantastic initiative, RfR Board Member, Biocon Founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, said, “What can be more important than food & water security for the nation!”. Pravesh Sharma, retired IAS officer who worked in the Ministry of Agriculture and is on the RfR Board said, that the government’s response today is in great measure a result of Sadhguru’s numerous initiatives to inspire millions of people to participate actively in (the) rejuvenation of our rivers.
Board Member Shashi Shekar, retired IAS officer and former Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, hoped the project would involve extensive people’s participation and their ownership.
Rally for Rivers advocates a participatory model of river revitalization. Its on-ground project- Cauvery Calling- to revitalize river Cauvery has thus far enlisted 125,000 farmers to adopt tree-based farming on their farmlands in the Cauvery river basin.
The model has been proven for nearly two decades on ground by Isha and farmers have reported a rise in their incomes between 3 and 8 times as well as significant improvement in soil health, groundwater levels and nutritional value of crops.
Cauvery Calling aims to enable 5 million farmers in the river basin to plant 2.42 billion trees on their farmlands over 12 years for sustainable economic and ecological benefits. Till date, the movement has enabled the planting of 62 million trees in the region.