For a living ganga: working with people and aquatic species

WWF-India has been working in the upper Ganga river stretch since 1997. Various programmes and projects involving indicator aquatic species and local communities have been implemented. It has been a major learning experience. The overarching focus has been on the effort to improve the status of the Ganga river ecosystem. Keeping in mind WWF-India’s earlier work and achievements in upper Ganga river stretch, WWF-India’s Freshwater Programme scaled up the work during 2007–2009. Along with biodiversity conservation, in this phase, WWF-India focused on adaptation strategies, like river bank restoration, alternate and improved livelihoods and reduction in pollution entering the river in this stretch of the Ganga river. The pilot sites for implementation of the project were in Karnabas and Mubarakpur villages located in Bulandsahar district of Uttar Pradesh. WWF-India used sophisticated tools and methods to understand the status of indicator species and the health of the river ecosystem.