Moving Upstream: A Unique Project For The Conservation Of The Ganga

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First published in Sanctuary Asia, Vol. 36 No. 6, June 2016
The villagers around this lake often see it drying up in the summer seasons and come back to life during the monsoons, when it gets connected again to the main stem of the river from where it was detached. Shallow water fishing gives them enough catch to get by, but not the famed Ilish (Hilsa), which doesn't appear now that the water is stagnant. The whole region has multiple such formations that have been created over the years, only that the frequency of this occurrence has somehow increased in the past 30-35 years. Photo Courtesy: The Veditum India Foundation.

The walk that commenced on Jun 6, 2016, is the individual undertaking of Siddharth Agarwal. He will travel from Sagar Island in West Bengal to the river's source in Tapovan, Uttarakhand.

As the Ganga basin serves 40 per cent of the country's population, a thorough examination of the river's ecological and social significance will go a long way in acknowledging the need for its conservation. The walk provides a unique platform for connecting with people by using the accrued research and real-life interactions for its conservation, and is using various media for this project to connect with a wide audience. Sanctuary Asia is providing Conservation Support to Siddharth Agarwal, connecting him with on-ground contacts along the way and publishing exclusive content by him later in the course of the journey. Stay tuned for the development of the journey on our website and Facebook page.

Project Link: Moving Upstream

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