The boats are out again: the Ganga has started falling in Kashi after a week of high water

After days of watching the water climb, Kashi is watching it go back down. The Ganga's level at Varanasi peaked at about 63.78 metres on Monday and then held steady, before dropping roughly 17 centimetres on Wednesday and another five on Thursday to around 63.56 metres. Experts put the retreat down to a quiet spell in the rain — it was the heavy early-August downpours in the hills upstream that had pushed the river up in the first place. The change everyone at the ghats was waiting for came on Thursday: boat operations, suspended while the river ran high, resumed. Boatmen speaking through the Maa Ganga Nishad Raj Seva Samiti welcomed the restart, and the samiti has asked operators to carry life jackets and rescue equipment on every trip and to stay ready to help if needed. The river is not back in its old shape yet. Several ghats are still cut off from one another, and small shrines along the bank remain under water. So if a sunrise boat ride or an evening at the aarti is on your list this week, do what Banarasis do: ask at the ghat that morning rather than the night before, check that your boat has jackets aboard, and take the steps slowly — stone that has been under the river stays slippery with silt for days after the water drops.

Compiled by HelloBanaras from public sources: Amar Ujala — Varanasi · Patrika — Varanasi