04-01-2005, 09:36 AM
<b>Japanese loan to fund clean-up of India's holy Ganges river</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->TOKYO (AFP) - Japan will extend a 10 million-dollar loan to India to help clean up the holy but heavily polluted Ganges river by building drains and toilets, an official said.
The Japan Bank for International Cooperation reached the agreement with the Indian government on Thursday to extend 11 billion yen (10 million dollars) for purification of the river, a bank spokeswoman said.
The Indian government will use the loan to construct or renovate in the Hindu holy city Varanasi three sewage facilities, 227 toilets in slums and river bathing areas, and 10 laundry sites which would discourage people from washing in the water.
The spokeswoman said the contamination of the river often caused bad smells and diarrhea among residents and occasionally infected some of the thousands of foreign tourists who flock each year to the sacred river.
The Ganges is under heavy pressure from untreated sewage which pours into the river, despite the Indian government's announcement of a clean-up program some two decades ago.
The Japanese bank spokeswoman estimated that the water quality of the Ganges is five times below Indian government safety standards.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
The Japan Bank for International Cooperation reached the agreement with the Indian government on Thursday to extend 11 billion yen (10 million dollars) for purification of the river, a bank spokeswoman said.
The Indian government will use the loan to construct or renovate in the Hindu holy city Varanasi three sewage facilities, 227 toilets in slums and river bathing areas, and 10 laundry sites which would discourage people from washing in the water.
The spokeswoman said the contamination of the river often caused bad smells and diarrhea among residents and occasionally infected some of the thousands of foreign tourists who flock each year to the sacred river.
The Ganges is under heavy pressure from untreated sewage which pours into the river, despite the Indian government's announcement of a clean-up program some two decades ago.
The Japanese bank spokeswoman estimated that the water quality of the Ganges is five times below Indian government safety standards.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->