which feeds the river Ganges is 30.2 km long and between 0.5 and 2.5 km wide is one of the largest in the Himalaya. However, Due to global warming it has been receding since 1780, although studies show its retreat quickened after 1971. Over the last 25 years, Gangotri glacier has retreated more than 850 meters, with a recession of 76 meters from 1996 to 1999 alone. The UN 2007 Climate Change Report has suggested that the glacial flow may completely stop by 2030, at which point the Ganges would be reduced to a seasonal river during the monsoon season. Failure of Ganga Action Plan The Ganga Action Plan or GAP was a program launched by Rajiv Gandhi in April 1986 to reduce the pollution load on the river. But the efforts to decrease the pollution level in the river became abortive even after spending ₹ 9017.1 million (~190 million USD adjusting to inflation). Therefore, this plan was withdrawn on 31 March 2000. This plan is described as failure by many scientist and NGOs in their studies. Background The movement did not build up suddenly. Concerns about the condition of the Ganges were raised for decades which gained impetus in the past few years owing to awareness and support from keen environmentalists. Furthermore, different studies revealed the deteriorating health of the river. In 1998, Smt Rama Rauta, the founder of National Women's Organization (NWO) under the leadership of Dr. Sushila Nair conceived the necessity to initiate public mobilization based on the principles of non-violence to seek support for Save Ganga Movement – against the pollution of the Ganges and its tributaries. A seminar on Ganga aur hamaaraa daayitvaon (Ganga and our duty) was conducted on 13 November 1998 at Kanpur. Soon popular Gandhians, Shri Sunderlal Bahuguna and Dr. Kanchanlata Sabarwal, also joined the Movement. Movement Swami Avimukteshwaranand Sarasvatī, convener of Gangas Seva Abhiyanam alleged the Central Government of overhearing their demands and trying to obstruct the movement. Mega rally of June 2012 Moved by the government's inaction towards saving the Ganges, the eminent Ganga Mukti Sangram Saamiti decided to initiate a mass drive by gathering thousands of Ganga Devotees along with the Ganga Rath which travelled through Varanasi on 14 June and then to Allahabad, Kanpur, Matura, Vrindavan and finally reach to Delhi on 17 June. Shankaracharya of Dwarka Sharda Pithas Swami Svarūpānanda Sarasvatī who also joined the movement at