Ambitious Namami Gange Mission marks not just the return of a species but the potential rebirth of an entire aquatic ecosystem that once faced near collapse. This is a beacon of hope for  biodiversity conservation in Ganga.

In a compelling turn of events that symbolizes hope, resilience, and the power of sustained policy intervention, the endangered Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle (Batagur kachuga) has returned to the Ganga after a three-decade absence. This milestone, achieved under the ambitious Namami Gange Mission, marks not just the return of a species but the potential rebirth of an entire aquatic ecosystem that once faced near collapse.

A River Reclaims Its Legacy

The Ganga has always been more than a river; it is the cultural and ecological lifeline of India. Yet, decades of unregulated pollution, urban sprawl, and industrial waste had choked its biodiversity. Among the many silent casualties of this degradation was the Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle—once a key species in the river’s ecological web.

For over 30 years, not a single confirmed sighting of an adult Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle had been reported along the mainstream of the Ganga. Considered one of the most endangered turtle species in North India, particularly Uttar Pradesh, the species was thought to be on the brink of regional extinction. Until now.

Namami Gange: Restoring the Ecological Pulse

Launched in 2014, the Namami Gange Mission aimed not only at cleaning the Ganga but also at rejuvenating its ecological health. The mission brought together a synergy of ministries, states, civil society, and scientific institutions to clean and restore the river basin. The programme’s scope quickly expanded beyond sanitation and afforestation to include wetland restoration, species conservation, and sustainable livelihoods.

Under this umbrella, the TSAFI (Turtle Survival Alliance Foundation India) project, supported by Namami Gange, undertook comprehensive ecological assessments in key habitats such as the Haiderpur Wetland Complex (HWC) and the newly declared turtle sanctuary near Prayagraj. These studies confirmed the presence of several turtle species but not a single viable population of the Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle—until now.

A Scientific Breakthrough: Reintroduction of the Species

On April 26, 2025, a historic reintroduction was undertaken. Twenty Red-Crowned Roofed Turtles were translocated from the Garhaita Turtle Conservation Center, located within the National Chambal Sanctuary, and released into the Haiderpur Wetland under a carefully monitored pilot programme.

The release followed a scientific approach: turtles were tagged with sonic telemetry devices and divided into two cohorts—one released upstream and the other downstream of the wetland’s barrage. This approach allows conservationists to assess the success rate of ‘soft’ versus ‘hard’ releases into the wild and fine-tune future strategies.

During the monsoon, the Haiderpur Wetland will fully connect with the Ganga, enabling the turtles to disperse naturally. Their behavior, migration, and survival will be closely monitored over the next two years, marking India’s first attempt at riverine turtle reintroduction using real-time tracking technology.

Why This Matters: Biodiversity and Beyond

The significance of this initiative cannot be overstated. Turtles serve as keystone species in freshwater ecosystems, helping to maintain the ecological balance by managing aquatic vegetation and scavenging dead matter. Their presence is an indicator of water quality and ecosystem health.

Restoring this species to its original habitat sends a strong signal: the Ganga is not just being cleaned; it is being revived.

This effort also contributes to India’s commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—especially SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) and SDG 15 (Life on Land)—and the broader objectives of climate adaptation and resilience in river ecosystems.

A Model for Replication

The Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle’s reintroduction exemplifies how convergent governance, community involvement, and scientific rigor can together produce transformational results. The approach balances species conservation with policy execution, all while adhering to fiscal and ecological responsibility.

It also highlights the value of wetlands like Haiderpur—which has already been recognized as a Ramsar Site—as vital ecological nodes for sustaining biodiversity.

Moreover, the initiative adds a new dimension to Namami Gange by demonstrating that a “clean” Ganga is not just about sewage treatment plants or solid waste management, but about rebuilding the ecological foundations of the river.

A Message for the Nation

The return of the Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle is not just about one species; it is a symbol of what India can achieve with consistent investment, interdepartmental collaboration, and ecological stewardship. It proves that with political will, scientific input, and community engagement, even critically endangered species can find a second chance.

As India envisions Viksit Bharat@2047, this success story adds a powerful chapter to the country’s environmental renaissance. It affirms that ecological restoration is not a luxury but a necessity, and that the health of our rivers must remain at the heart of India’s development discourse.

In the quiet waters of the Haiderpur Wetland, a new chapter in India’s conservation journey has begun. The Red-Crowned Roofed Turtle’s return is not only a scientific milestone but also a moral victory—a testament to what determined governance, patient conservation, and deep respect for nature can accomplish.

The Namami Gange Mission has done more than revive a river. It has rekindled life itself.

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Financial independence is the language of empowerment; every woman should be fluent in it.

Women are everywhere, from defence to aerospace, from highest-earning CEOs to those holding the top positions in the political system; there is barely any field left unexplored by women. However, this journey of growth, as we witness it today, was not linear. If we look at the 2016 figure, SEBI data shows that only 20 per cent of women were financially literate, around 43 per cent of women had bank accounts before 2014, and only one-third of women had access to digital literacy prior to 2014, and the figure is even more dismal for rural women. However, the Modi government recognized the need to integrate the other half i.e. women, in mainstream development programs and thereby launched a series of targeted schemes. There are two such flagship programs that were instrumental in achieving the targets.

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)

Launched in August 2014, Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana completed a decade last year. The scheme has been instrumental in bringing 54.97 cores unbanked into the formal banking system.  The scheme aimed at opening bare savings bank deposit accounts with zero cost and no maintenance charges, also subject to eligibility, offering up to 10,000 overdraft facilities to cover expenses. It has been successful in being one of the largest financial inclusion schemes in the world. If we look at females’ participation, 30.6 crore accounts, which is around 66 per cent of the total, are women account holders. Furthermore, 37.60 crore Ruppe Cards were issued with an accidental insurance cover of 2 lakhs, which provided Jan Suraksha or micro-insurance to the needy.

Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY)

For small businesses, arranging for factors of production, particularly capital, is one of the most daunting tasks. The hardships are further exacerbated if the loan seeker is a woman without any collateral support. Sensing the gap and recognizing the need for it, the government launched PMMY with the aim of providing collateral-free loans to micro, small, and medium enterprises, particularly women. As of November 2024, a total of 1.51 crores of women entrepreneurs with a 61.3 per cent share have raised 87,718 crores out of 2.64 total.

PMMY aligns perfectly with the vision of Aatm Nirbhar Bharat by empowering small businesses and building self-sustaining units in the economy. Working with the intention of breaking big and thriving, the scheme helped unleash the potential of MSMEs in the economy, thereby building both resilience and equality. Small businesses in food processing, handicrafts, textiles, pickle papad and incense stick businesses have enormously benefitted from the schemes and have witnessed considerable growth in their earnings.

Creating Impact: Inclusion and Accessibility

These schemes have facilitated small savings amongst women and facilitated access to credit channelled through bank accounts. It led to the creation of formalized banking systems or, more promptly, the ‘Financialization of Savings’. Additionally, the scheme has helped the government roll on the direct benefit transfer [DBT] program wherein the intended beneficiaries received financial aid and subsidies without intermediaries, thereby reducing the leakages in the system. The scheme addresses the major financial inclusion gaps by opening accounts, mobilizing savings to productive sectors, creating credit history and keeping a better vigil on the worthiness of individuals.

Apart from all this, the schemes proved to be a major step in reducing the mental barriers and instil confidence amongst women to lead a more healthy, secure life, to have a better say in family affairs and, more importantly, to raise the standard of their living as well as that of their children and contribute to economic development through wheels of growth. Including women in government policy has helped create mental shifts and move away from the old pattern of thinking that ‘women are not capable enough to make financial decisions’ to the point that they are capable enough.

Barriers in Creating Impact

Although a significant increase in the percentage of women’s participation in these schemes has been witnessed, many challenges remain at the grassroots level.  Barriers to accessing financial services, social mobility constraints, limited financial and digital literacy, and lack of proper identity proof are a few.

Way to Make Schemes More Inclusive

Some of the ways that can be employed by making these two schemes more inclusive is hiring more women business correspondence to expand on the financial inclusion and literacy parts, plus a feedback mechanism can be created where any difficulties concerning them could be resolved. Another way is to create continuous awareness programs through workshops, banners, and posters. Additionally, constantly assessing and re-evaluating the impacts with timely tracking of progress and paradigm policy changes could prove to be beneficial in this regard.

Financial inclusion and access are two very prominent tools in the hands of the government. It holds tremendous potential to create economic and social empowerment. The current progress made in this regard is impressive.  The two schemes have been catalysts in changing the landscape of financial inclusion coupled with access to financial resources, which hold the potential for upward movements in economic trajectory.

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With a young demographic, Bihar holds a promising potential to capitalize on its demographic and contribute to our national objectives, provided steps are taken continuously to address the prevalent gaps.

‘When everybody is included, everybody wins’ -Jesse Jackson

Bihar, once a flourished land with a rich cultural heritage and an important centre of education where world-renowned universities like Nalanda, Odantapuri and Vikram Shila were established, is now counted as one of the least literate states in India. With 61.8 per cent literacy, below the national average of 74 per cent, the figures are even more disappointing for female literacy. As per the Human Development Index, Bihar stands at 36th position; Niti Aayog’s SDG India index 2023-24 ranked Bihar as the worst-performing state. The condition of Bihar could be attributed to multi-dimensional factors like recurring natural disasters (heavy floods), over-reliance on agriculture, lack of infrastructure, poor governance, inadequate education, rampant unemployment, insufficient healthcare facilities and labour migration in search for better job opportunities in other states; the list is long.

Recently, Prime Minister  Modi visited Bhagalpur, where he released the 19th instalment of Kisan Samman Nidhi, prioritising the welfare, happiness, and prosperity of farmers. He addressed a gathering of farmers of more than 5 lakh, unfortunately which has been now linked with the Bihar elections 2025. But this is beyond politics. Bihar really needs attention and requires support and demands a special grant. The dream of Viksit Bharat 2047 needs the support of Bihar, and PM Modi is just ensuring that no one is left behind. This year’s Budget also addressed the same, supporting Bihar to rebuild its lost glory.

Budget 2025 and Bihar

Budget 2025-26 is themed on ‘Sabka Vikas’, stimulating balanced growth of all regions. One area that caught special attention was the fund allocation of Rs 86,000 crores to Bihar and the preferred waring of Madhubani printed motif saree by the finance minister Nirmala Sitaram on the budget day. Debates signalled around the involvement of political interests in the upcoming legislative assembly elections in the state. This could be one of the possible reasons. However, if we look from an economic angle, it was a necessary and deliberate step given the conditions surrounding the state. Therefore, through this budget, certain attempts were made by the government to address some of the gaps surrounding the state, some of them are as follows,

Establishment of Makhana Board:

As per a paper by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research 2020, Bihar contributes nearly 90% of India’s total makhana production, producing nearly 10,000 tons of makhana [foxnut], majorly by Darbhanga, Madhubani, Purnia, Katihar district among others. Establishing a makhana board will help improve production, processing, value addition, and marketing. Additionally, to fill and address the handholding and training gaps, these people will be organized into Farmer’s produce organisations, i.e. FPOs.

IIT Patna on expansion horizon:

IIT Patna was established as one of the first national institutions to be set up in Bihar in 2008. As per the NIRF rankings 2024, it stood at 34^th position in the engineering field and 73rd overall. Given the noteworthy performance of the institute, and as a part of a broader initiative to strengthen IITs, the finance minister pointed out the need for its major expansion requirements. The budget proposed the allocation for expanding the hostel and infrastructure at IIT Patna, thereby increasing the accommodating capacity to 6500 for students, researchers, and faculty. Also, the institute received approval of 125 crores for a technological park funded by both the centre and the state, and it plans to add management studies to this curriculum soon. this initiative is expected to attract more talent to the state. This is a welcome step towards addressing the educational needs of the state.

Addressing the Sorrow of Bihar with western Kosi cannel ERM project:

To benefit the farmers of the Mithila region, cultivating around 50000 hectares of land, the Finance Minister announced financial aid for this project. Kosi is considered the sorrow of Bihar because of the tendency of the river to frequently change its course and render a large cultivable land unfit for cultivation for a long time due to flooding and waterlogging during monsoons. Developing proper channel and water management practices is the only sustainable solution to this evergreen problem.

Expansion of airports:

Due to growing demand in the area for commuters, greenfield airports are encouraged. Along with this, there is a proposed expansion plan for Patna Airport for improved connectivity. Also, a brownfield airport at Bhita is proposed. Greenfield projects offer a clean slate, requiring more planning and investments from scratch; on the contrary, Brownfield airports are expansion plans based on existing projects.

National Institute for Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management:

To promote food processing activities in the eastern region of Bihar, NIFTEM is proposed to be established. This initiative aims to accelerate the additional value of agriproducts and ultimately increase farmers’ income. In addition to this, the institute will serve as a hub for skill enhancement among the youth and help them to equip themselves with industry-relevant skills. This will further help Agri-produce startups create employment in the region.

Boost up Infra-framework:

The infrastructure sector received a significant allocation, with a major push to road projects worth 26,000 and for other infrastructure improvements. This will lead to increased intra-state connectivity in rural areas and enhanced logistic movements, thus aiding Bihar’s growing economy.

The effectiveness of a policy is not measured in terms of how a developed state is developing further, but how an underdeveloped state is brought at par to compete with its counterparts. The 2025-26 budget truly reflected its theme, ‘SABKA VIKAS’; the apt allocation of budget to the imperative region clearly indicates the government’s intentions to not just understand but address the issues surrounding the state. With a young demographic, Bihar holds a promising potential to capitalize on its demographic and contribute to our national objectives, provided steps are taken continuously to address the prevalent gaps.

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