"You will appreciate, Sir that the issue of the health of our rivers is one that is affecting not only our generation but shall also have profound implications for generations to come," Anil Madhav Dave, a Rajya Sabha member from Madhya Pradesh said in a letter to Singh.
The poor health of the country's rivers is taking a toll on all development indices across all states, he said.
"I request you that keeping the magnitude of the issue in mind the government of India should constitute an 'Indian Institute of River Health & Science (IIRHS)'," Dave said.
He said the institute should be a flagship autonomous institution dedicated towards monitoring the health of all major rivers across the country and developing the field of river sciences as a major thrust area of the efforts towards national growth and well-being.
"The river along with its catchment must be considered as a single living entity and its entire surrounding land, forests, ponds, groundwater condition, human settlement, different animal species, river bed, river bank and aquatic life, are parameters indicative of its health that need to be closely and annually monitored," he said.
An annual River Health Index can facilitate the framing of relevant river and water policies. The Institution can thus spearhead path breaking research in this field, Dave said.
