Union Government launched the model Ganga Gram initiative. It was launched by Union Minister for Water Resource & Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti and Union Minister Rural Development Narendra Singh Tomar. Under the initiative, 24 Namami Gange villages have been identified in the 1st phase (Uttarakhand – 3, Uttar Pradesh – 10, Bihar – 4, Jharkhand – 5, and West Bengal – 2) to make them Adarsh Ganga Grams.