See The World's Most Polluted River Revealed in Photos
Published 8 Nov 2017, 18:16 GMT, Updated 13 Nov 2017, 18:42 GMT
Hindu devotees along the banks of the Ganges get ready to bathe in the water of the sacred river.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteAn emaciated-looking horse waits to transport Hindu devotees along the banks of the Ganges River.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteA woman collects mustard leaves in a field across from an oil refinery along the Ganges River.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteAn iceberg of foam forms from the chemical waste dumped by factories along the Yamuna River, which is a tributary of the Ganges River.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteA homeless boy fishes for coins using a string and a magnet along the Yamuna river in Delhi, the main tributary of the Ganges
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteA city built of tents can be seen from above, all in preparation for Kumbh Mela, the world’s largest religious gathering, in Allahabad, India.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteThe largest religious gathering on Earth, Kumbh Mela, is held every 12 years on the banks of the Triveni Sangam—the confluence of three rivers, including the Ganges.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteHindu devotees bathe in the Ganges during Kumbh Mela, which they believe will wash away their sins.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstitutePiles of laundry from hotels lay in the mud along the Yamuna River.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteEvery year during the dry season, the Ganges waters on the Bangladesh Border dry up due to the closure of the Farakka Dam on the Indian border.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteA woman crosses a small channel of the Ganges on a submerged bridge made of waste.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteHindu devotees walk into the waters of the Ganges to bathe during Kumbh Mela, India.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteOne of the tributaries of the Ganges near Haridwar becomes arid and bone dry during the hot season.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteGray clouds billow out of smoke stacks in the distance along a dry tributary of the Ganges River.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteChemicals spill out from one of the tanneries of Kanpur, where they pour into the Ganges.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteA group of musicians gets ready to entertain the crowds that are waiting for the Sadhu, or holy person, at Kumbh Mela.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, InstituteAn early morning scene on the river.
Photograph by Giulio Di Sturco, Institute