NEW DELHI: The Delhi Govt has appointed Namami Gange former DG G Asok Kumar as advisor. He will be advising govt on implementing its ambitious sanitation master plan, studying urban flooding and the clean Yamuna drive. A 1991 batch IAS officer who retired as Nanami Gange DG and special secretary last year, Kumar has earlier served in the aviation ministry as joint secretary.Kumar is credited with the Centre’s “catch the rain initiative”. Prime Minister Modi had launched this campaign on World Water Day (March 22) in 2021 under the flagship Jal Shakti Abhiyan.“I will be advising PWD on some areas like tackling urban flooding; the sewerage master plan and Yamuna cleanup,” Kumar said. During his stint at National Mission for Clean Ganga, Kumar laid emphasis on making the Namami Gange “programme sustainable, by pitching it as a peoples’ movement.” He expanded the River Cities alliance (RCA) with 20 cities on the basin of River Ganga, to an organization with over 142 cities on the banks of various Indian rivers.

