The Centre and Bihar government signed an agreement on November 3 to use suitable material removed from rivers and other water bodies in national highway construction.
The initiative, called Nadi Sanjivani, connects planned desilting with road-building needs. According to the transport ministry’s announcement, the aim is to improve water flow while reducing demand for fresh earth and agricultural soil.
The agreement is a framework for future work, rather than confirmation that dredging has begun or flood risks have already fallen. Identified water bodies will require technical assessments, and extraction is to be limited to approved locations and prescribed quantities.
Material destined for highways must also pass tests against road-construction specifications. The ministry says safeguards should protect river ecosystems, banks, embankments, bridges and other structures.
Bihar’s Road Construction Department will coordinate implementation, supported by a state-level committee. Joint measurements, digital records and checks on extracted, transported and used quantities are planned to monitor the work.
For communities near affected rivers, the important next details will be which locations receive approval and how the site-specific safeguards are applied.
Archive illustration: the River Ganges, not a photograph of the new desilting programme. Photo: Chandan Singh / Flickr, CC BY 2.0.
