Haridwar News: Why Our Sacred Places Are Fading Under Litter
ANANDITA SINGH PAL
Tourists are becoming terrorists for the rivers and their own mother land
It is a common sight across our country: a historic temple, a serene riverbank, or a majestic mountain shrine bustling with thousands of devotees seeking spiritual peace. Yet, look a little closer, and the visual reality is heartbreaking.
Piles of discarded plastic bottles, single-use bags, decaying floral offerings wrapped in polythene, and heavily polluted water bodies form the backdrop of our most sacred spaces.
As religious tourism skyrockets, our places of worship are facing a quiet but severe environmental crisis.
The very destinations built on the foundations of sanctity, purity, and reverence are becoming dirtier day by day. Traditionally, a Yatra (pilgrimage) was a minimalist journey focusing on simple living and a low environmental footprint. Today, it has evolved into high-volume commercial religious tourism. Infrastructure built decades ago simply cannot keep up with millions of visitors arriving simultaneously.
No country is good or bad,it is we who are polluting it out and behaving as if everything is normal. Packaged drinking water, snacks, and offerings are heavily reliant on cheap plastics. Foreign countries are mocking the Indians over polluting their own rivers which they worship and calling them un-civilized with zero civics sense. Due to a lack of accessible garbage bins, tourists leave behind a trail of wrappers, bottles, and discarded footwear.Tons of flowers, incense ash, coconuts, and clothes are routinely offered to deities. Out of a deep fear of disrespecting these sacred items, devotees often throw them directly into nearby rivers or lakes instead of putting them in regular trash bins. Over time, these organic materials rot, depleting oxygen levels in the water and destroying local aquatic life.Major sacred rivers like the Ganga and Yamuna suffer immensely from toxic chemical accumulation, untreated sewage, and solid waste dumps, creating massive toxic foam blooms during festive seasons.
True change happens when people realize that protecting the Earth is an act of devotion itself. Ancient scriptures teach us that nature is sacred; our actions on pilgrimages should reflect that reverence. Shrines must strictly enforce zero-plastic zones, set up free water-refill stations to discourage bottled water, and provide ample, clearly labeled trash cans for segregation. Instead of throwing flowers in the river use it in the soil which will add humus to the soil and result in better vegetation.
