Source: Nationwide News Pty Limited
VARANASI, INDIA, March 29, 2003: Hindus yearn to visit the holy Ganges River, to bathe in its sacred waters known to cleanse or wash away all sins, and many Hindus hope to die in Varanasi in order to escape from the cycle of rebirth. Approximately 80,000 people bathe daily on the ancient ghats of Varanasi. The source of the Ganges is in an ice cave high in the Himalayas, and it makes its way through the most densely populated area of the world until it merges into the Bay of Bengal. It is precisely along this journey that the river has accumulated raw sewage, human ash, animal carcasses and industrial waste. In 1985, the Ganges Action Plan was launched to start the cleanup by installing sewage plants in major cities along the river. However, the plan failed as it used too much of India’s valuable energy resources and the plants in many cities are now idle. Since 1985, a recent study indicates that the amount of sewage flowing into the Ganges has doubled. Amrit Dhillan, reporter for Nationwide News, says, “The sacred Ganges has become so filthy that even Hindu holy men refuse to bathe in it.” From fasting, to attract government attention, to lodging a public petition in the courts, these holy men are protesting the condition of the river. “Tests last year of Varanasi water samples showed that the fecal coliform count (a measure of human and animal waste in water) was 50 times the level considered acceptable for human beings,” said M.C. Mehta, a Varanasi lawyer and environmentalist. He added, “No scheme will work unless it involves public participation. You have to educate the people to treat the river differently.” Presently, locals wash laundry in the river and dump rubbish, bodies, plastic bags and rotting garlands. Mishra Mehta’s group called the Friends of Ganges have been trying to force the Indian government to approve a new project called Clean Ganges. Mishra herself says, “I want to do my holy dip and yet I know the river is filthy. So I compromise by not going all the way in.”