Is Ganga River really drying up? Viral social media videos show a dry riverbed at Haridwar’s Har Ki Pauri in October 2026. The video raised panic among devotees visiting Uttrakhand for holy bathing.
Officials confirmed the low water levels stem from the annual 20 day Ganga canal closure managed by the Uttar Pradesh Irrigation Department. The Ganga canal closure is in effect from October 20 midnight until November 8.
The canal shutdown allows desilting, embankment repairs, and infrastructure upgrades ahead of the major religious gathering of Hinduism, the upcoming Kumbh Mela.
Why Ganda in Haridwar Har Ki Pauri Looks Dry and What Officials Say?
The Upper Ganga Canal stretches 560 kilometres from Haridwar down to Kanpur. Each year authorities halt its flow before Diwali to clear heavy silt deposits and fix structural damage along the embankments of Ganga in Uttarakhand.
Sub divisional officer Bharat Bhushan noted that field staff received orders to supply baseline water to central spots like Brahmakund.
Despite this riverbed sections remain visible. This leaves arriving pilgrims to bathe using small vessels along the steps of Haridwar Har ki Puri.
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Closure Window: Midnight October 20 to November 8
Primary Reason: Routine desilting, ghat repairs, and Kumbh Mela preparation
Managing Agency: Uttar Pradesh Irrigation Department
Affected Regions: 15 UP districts, Haridwar, and 7 NCR districts
How Ganga Canal Closure for 20 Days Affects Livelihoods?
Apart from devotees being deprived of Ganga bathing at Uttarakhand’s Har ki Puri there will also be a direct impact on drinking water distribution downstream.
Facilities like the Pratap Vihar treatment plant in Ghaziabad face reduced raw water input which is temporarily hitting municipal supplies in parts of Delhi-NCR.
Normal flow across the canal system will resume right after maintenance wraps up on November 8.
Plastic Waste Crisis Exposed along the Ganga Riverbed
The Ganga River is not drying up as shown in the viral videos, not in the near future. But the temporary shutdown of Ganga canals revealed an underlying ecological issue.
The receding flow exposed piles of polythene bags, abandoned footwear, clothes, and plastic trash jammed against the natural riverbed stones.
The exposure has driven local volunteers and municipal teams to launch clean-up drives across Haridwar to clear tons of trapped waste before water is released back into the canal system.
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Where Ganga Ranks among India’s Most Polluted Rivers in 2026?
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) reports that the Ganga main stem shows significant water quality improvements compared to previous years.
The latest Polluted River Stretches (PRS) CPCB report notes that the Ganga River meets standard bathing criteria for pH and Dissolved Oxygen across almost its entire length in Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Bihar, and West Bengal.
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The Ganga main stem is no longer listed among India’s top 25 most severely polluted river stretches (Priority Category I with BOD exceeding 30 mg/L).
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The Ganga River stretches requiring active intervention remain focused mainly in Uttar Pradesh. The local hotspots include Farrukhabad to Kanpur, Dalmau in Raebareli, and downstream sections between Mirzapur and Ghazipur.
There are 271 out of 296 polluted river stretches identified nationwide. And rivers like the Yamuna and Sabarmati rank higher in organic pollution intensity than the main channel of the Ganga.