blog #24
The race to save the river Ganges
by: Simon Scarr, Weiyi Cai, Vinod Kumar and Alasdair Pal
January 18th, 2019
The Ganges River begins within the Himalayas. Here, the water is pristine, it is only the animals and a few priests who access the River at this point. However as it begins to flow downward, the dumping of untreated sewage contaminates the water which is vital for drinking, bathing, and irrigation to the peoples below. The water pictured above turns red or foams with contamination, but is used by many regardless. It is the belief of Hindus that by bathing in the River, the faithful can be absolved of their sins. Over 400 million people rely on this river, but the high levels of fecal coliform along with other pathogens cause diarrhea and dysentery for many of the bathers. While the Indian government has announced plans to organize a clean up, conflicts between officials have stalled action.
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