news details |
|
|
| Holy stream crying for help for restoration | | Where has Baan Ganga ‘vanished’? | | Early Times Report
Katra, Apr 26: Faith, they say should never be hurt or allowed to get hurt. But that is what is happening at Baan Ganga, the first entry point from where the ascent starts for holy Mata Vaishno Devi pilgrimage. Baan Ganga , the holy stream associated with this holy pilgrimage is no more a stream for its gushing waters have vanished, reducing it to bare minimum, rather a stagnated flow where the pilgrims are still performing every activity they used to when the flow was gushing or even normal. Baan Ganga is surely crying for help from both environmentalists as well the government under whose care it should have been protected from further ‘damage’ and contamination.
For thousands of pilgrims visiting this holy shrine daily, mere glance down the stream from walk bridge makes them feel disappointed. Until only some years ago, the stream used to have splash of aggressive water cascading from a natural source high up in the mountains. The murmuring sound of the water in its course through the huge mountains used to be enchanting and enticing for the pilgrims. But both these pleasant things have disappeared as there is literally no or little water which barely makes any noise , leave alone the solacing murmurs which would satiate spiritual thirst of the pilgrims. The holy rivulet has been brazenly deprived of its natural flow and the causes are varied.But more than vanished and disappeared flux of water, it is present state of the stream which makes pilgrims upset and unhappy.
The water flows in a very thin current at present which barely finds way down the rocks. But some pilgrims, quite apparently nourishing the religious sentiments and aspirations related with the pilgrimage continue to take ‘bath’ rather a compulsive shower on account of their faith of holy stream. Since there is no water in the main stream, many choose to stay in front of leakage points in the water pipes running adjacent to the mountainous path along the dried up “Baan Ganga”. These leakage points serve them as jets from where water pours out , enough to take a shower. Many choose to lift handfuls of water at certain points where it gets accumulated due to narrow course.
Due to scanty or very less water, the stream which used to have fresh pure look now presents a polluted and contaminated look. This is mainly because whatever water has now been left moves on almost in stagnant flow. The pilgrims throw up all sorts of things into the water which further adds to contamination of the holy rivulet. More than anything else, it is the cut off hairs of small children after their mundan ceremony which pilgrims throw in scanty water, all in the name of performing their religious rituals. While most of the pilgrims go about this practice without paying heed where they are actually throwing the hair, there are few sensible who notice what they feel doing double harm both to their religious sentiments as well as to the holy stream.
“It is like a self deceptive act………there is no water at all but still people are throwing hair in the belief that it will find way into larger holy river”, said Neetu Gupta, a pilgrim from Delhi who too had come to immerse the hairs of her son Paarth. “ I had kept the hairs for two years only for the purpose of immersing it in Baan Ganga but I feel totally shattered to see the condition here………its is no point adding to pollution just for the sake of religious ritual”, Neetu said. The couple from Delhi who had come along with kids finally decided not to immerse the hairs unlike many others who sat by the bank of the rivulet where ‘mundan’ ceremonies were going on followed by immersion rituals.
While these rituals were taking place at the main banks down the bridge over Baan Ganga, only a few yards away the banks presented further dilapidation with some temporary sheds constructed by one side where ponies take rest. The whole area quite apparently is littered and the dried up Baan Ganga few feet away from this defilement flows quietly, as if crying for help for its resurrection and restoration apart from measures to maintain its piousness and purity.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
