Context

A performance audit conducted by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on the degradation of the Shipra River, threw up a host of significant findings.

Key Findings of the CAG Audit Report On Shipra River

• First Performance Audit:  It was perhaps the first performance audit conducted by the CAG on a river’s degradation in the entire central India. 
• Improper Management of the River Basin:  The natural flow the river reduced due to improper management and over extraction of ground water in the Kshipra sub-basin. 
• Causes of Deteriorating Water Quality of the River: Merging of untreated sewage in the river, inadequate treatment of industrial waste, pollution at riverbanks adversely affecting the water quality of the Kshipra 
• Non Completion of Work in the stipulated time:  The sewerage network and STP related works were not completed as per timelines 
• Lack of Infrastructure: ULBs (Urban Local Bodies) lacked sound systems for disposal of faecal sludge. Some STPs were working on older technologies and the provision of reuse of the treated effluents was also not created by the ULBs.
• Granting of Permission to Industries: The MP Pollution Control Board (MPPCB) belatedly granted consent to industries adjacent to the river basin
• Absence of Effluent Treatment Plants: Many industries either ran without effluent treatment plants (ETP) or were not equipped with alternative sources of power. 
• Zero Liquid Discharge Compliance: A proper mechanism for ensuring compliance of zero liquid discharge status wasn’t available 
• Groundwater Contamination: Parameters of iron, cadmium, nickel and lead were beyond the permissible limit in the ground water of Dewas industrial area, but action against the defaulting industries wasn’t taken. 
• Non issuance of Guidelines for Flood Plain zones: Guidelines regarding regulations in flood plain zones (FPZ) were not issued by the Nagar Nigams and encroachments were observed in the FPZ of Kahn and Kshipra rivers.
• Non Execution of River front Development: River Front Development work wasn’t executed properly.

About Shipra River: Madhya Pradesh

• About: The Shipra, also known as the Kshipra, is a river in Madhya Pradesh state.
• Type of River: It is a perennial river and is considered as sacred as the Ganga River by the Hindus. 
• Course of River:
  • Origin: It originates in the Vindhya Range from a hill called Kakri-Tekdi, which is in the north of Dhar and situated at a distance of 11km from Ujjain. 
  • It flows across the Malwa Plateau to join the Chambal River.

• Major Tributaries: Khan and Gambhir

• Religious Significance of Shipra River

• • The Puranas, or ancient Hindu texts, put forward that the Shipra originated from the heart of Varaha, Lord Vishnu’s incarnation as a boar.
  • Also on the banks of the Shipra is Sage Sandipani’s ashram or hermitage, where Krishna, Lord Vishnu’s eighth incarnation, had studied.
  • It finds mention not only in ancient Hindu texts but also in Buddhist and Jain scriptures.
  • The holy city of Ujjain is located on the right bank of the Shipra River. 
  • The famous Kumbha Mela takes place in the ghats of this city, once every 12 years, a yearly celebration of the river goddess Kshipra.

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