New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to lift the ban on Chhath Puja celebrations in the Yamuna, citing the river’s high pollution levels and said it would be harmful to devotees. The court also said that sufficient arrangements were already made for devotees. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice […]

To understand the risk posed by the highly polluted river Yamuna, an India Today team collected water samples from three key locations — Wazirabad, ITO Barrage, and Kalindi Kunj — to examine the river’s water quality.

Lakhs of devotees thronged artificial ghats across the national capital on Thursday to mark the third day of Chhath Puja and offer ‘Sandhya Arghya’ [water to the setting sun]. Some of the devotees rued not being able to reach their hometowns in time while others were miffed by the prohibition on performing the rituals on the Yamuna’s banks. However, a celebratory atmosphere was palpable across the ghats, where people could be seen performing rituals, singing folk songs, and clicking selfies together. The four-day festival dedicated to the Sun God, which started on Tuesday, is celebrated predominantly by Purvanchalis, the Bhojpuri-speaking people from eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and parts of Jharkhand. The rituals include holy bathing, fasting, standing in water, and making offerings to the rising and setting sun.