Sacred butter lamps burn on the shores of the Ganges River at Triveni Ghat, Rishikesh, India.
Bhagirathi Peaks from Sundarvan Basecamp, Gangotri Glacier, Garhwal Himalaya, India
The faithful perform Ganga Aarti, a puja to the Ganges, at the Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India.
A poor woman from the dhobi, or clothes washing, caste, cleans pots along the waste-strewn banks of the Yamuna River at Dhobi Ghat, Agra; the famed Taj Mahal rises behind.
Workers at Sahara Tannery toss lime-soaked hides into vats of chromium and other chemicals.
Blue, sludge waters fill massive vats at the wastewater treatment plant in Kanpur. Full of chromium, lime, and many other toxic chemicals, this water is often flushed untreated straight into the Ganges.
A man makes his morning prayers in the waters of the Hooghly (Ganges) River near Fairley Ghat, Calcutta, India.