New Delhi, India

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday (Nov 6) rejected requests from devotees to hold Chhath Puja on the banks of the Yamuna river, citing severe water pollution and the presence of harmful foam.

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A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) had been submitted to the court challenging the ban on the ritual, asking that worshippers be allowed to celebrate on the river’s banks. The petitioner’s lawyer argued that the ghats and river should be cleaned for the festival. However, the court stated that such a task could not be achieved overnight due to its complexity.

The case was heard by a division bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, rejected the plea from the Purvanchal Nav Nirman Sansthan, which had sought permission for devotees to conduct Chhath Puja on the Yamuna’s bank.

The court said, “If you want to get involved in the cleaning-up process, work over there. The problem is, we cannot be discharging sewage into the Yamuna. We are today discharging sewage into the Yamuna. Look at the unauthorised colonies built on the banks and the untreated sewage.”

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The court added, "Today, our mindset needs to be clean. The problem is, in our mind, that the Yamuna is uncleaned. We are not cleaning our minds. If you can clean that, then you can clean Yamuna very quickly."

The court continued, “It will be very harmful to you. The fact is that the river is so polluted that if you dip into it, there is the likelihood that. A person will suffer harm. We can’t allow that. The river itself is highly polluted.”

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The High Court also referred to a recent incident where someone fell ill and required hospitalisation after bathing in contaminated water.

The court said that approximately 1,000 alternative sites had been arranged for the festival, providing safe options for devotees to perform the ritual.

Chhath Puja is set to be celebrated on Thursday, with the Delhi government declaring a public holiday for the occasion. Despite the Yamuna being covered with toxic foam due to high pollution levels and untreated sewage containing phosphates and surfactants, devotees traditionally offer prayers by taking a dip and facing the Sun.

(With inputs from agencies)