Ailing Great Mother
Raw Sewage flows directly into the Ganges River in Varanasi, India, September 2007.
The Ganges is viewed as a river of salvation, a place to wash away sins, a place to pass on from this world, to bathe, to wash clothing, swim and enjoy life. Everyday over 60,000 Indians come down to the shores and ghats of the Ganges to do just that along this 7km stretch in Varanasi. Yet amongst this are over 25 sewer pipes continuously draining straight into the river, along with trash, waste, dead bodies and remains from the burning ghats.
The water is so heavily polluted that it has become septic, meaning no disolved oxygen exists. Water born diseases run rampant along the shores of the great river, and the problem isnt just in Varanasi, but it also extends up and down stream to the other 400 million people who live along its banks. In recent years there has been efforts to clean up the river with the installation of sewage treatment plants, however they have had little success due to frequent power outages, which also leads to sewage back ups in the city and surrounding villages.
This Photo is part of a larger essay which can be seen here at http://sakulskyphotography.com/galleries/varanasi/story_var.html
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