Livelihood Challenges, Community Perception and Payment for Ecosystem Services: The Curious Case of Fisherfolk of the River Ganga

The river Ganga’s ecological significance in the spiritual landscape of India gives it a unique economic and socio-cultural eminence. Using the framework of ecosystem services evaluation and people’s perception, this study explores the willingness of riverine fishing communities to pay towards initiatives aimed at restoring the quality of Ganga River water. The article is based on a published NCAER report entitled, ‘Livelihood and health challenges of riverine communities of the River Ganga’ (Pohit et al., 2020). A primary survey of 800 fishermen was undertaken along the upstream and downstream of the river Ganga in two states of India, Uttar Pradesh (UP) and West Bengal (WB), during January–February 2020. First, a theme-based content analysis was conducted to map the community’s perception. It reflected the implications of river water pollution on the livelihood of fishermen and the cultural values associated with the Ganga separately for the two states. Second, a contingent valuation exercise was undertaken, which found that 34 and 25 per cent of the fishermen, respectively, in UP and WB, were ready to pay towards the cleaning of the Ganga. Income constraint was the main reason limiting the willingness to pay, followed by perceptions that river restoration was the government’s responsibility. Only 11 per cent of the respondents in both states agreed to accept any compensation for their livelihood implications in lieu of more pollution. Interestingly, our regression analysis shows that fishermen who were willing to accept compensation were at lower odds of paying towards cleanliness. JEL Codes: Q51, Q53, Q57, I31, R58