The government's plan, however, will keep the poor out its purview.
"The cost of inter-linking of rivers has risen from Rs 5 lakh crore to Rs 11 lakh crore. The cost of cleaning up Ganga is likely to be around Rs 50,000 crore," said a top government source.
Senior officials in the Water Resources Ministry have been asked to devise ways to generate revenue for such high-cost projects, the source said.
On cleaning up of Ganga, the source said the result of the project will be visible by next year.
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"Immediate steps in this process are solid waste management, treating the sewage and industrial waste, ensuring environmental flow and beautification of river front while keeping the bio-diversity in mind," the source said.
The Water Resources Ministry will soon submit its plan for cleaning up Ganga to the NGT, as it did for Yamuna.
The government is also thinking of roping in Australia for river basin management and Israel for drip irrigation. It is also studying the rejuvenated Rhine river, which shows some similarities to Ganga.