Haridwar sees nearly 5cr Kanwar Yatra pilgrims, 7,000 tons waste
This year's Kanwar Yatra brought nearly five crore pilgrims to Haridwar, but it also left behind a huge mess: at least 7,000 tons of waste piled up across the city and at Har Ki Pauri ghat.
Discarded clothes, plastic items, and other trash were everywhere, making cleanup a massive challenge for the city.
Cleaners removed urine bottles without protection
one of them described it as "unfortunate," pointing out how religious celebrations are clashing with environmental care.
Cleaners had to remove bottles filled with urine from changing rooms, without gloves or masks.
Even Gangotri, meant to be a plastic-free zone in the Himalayas, wasn't spared; as many as 57 sacks of waste were collected after pilgrims left.
City officials say teams worked through the night to clean up after Shivratri, but worries about lasting damage remain.