Hindus apply for 'Ganges' in UK

River Ganges is considered holy water

BRADFORD, England -- Hindus and Sikhs living in Britain are campaigning for permission to be able to scatter the ashes of their dead relatives in an English river as an alternative to the Ganges.

Traditionally the River Ganges, the most religiously significant river in India, has been used for the ceremony.

But according to Hindu belief all rivers merge into one and flow up to God and so any river can be used for the ritual.

As a result, a Hindu and Sikh community living in the traditional north English county of Yorkshire hope to be allowed to scatter the ashes of the dead without having to travel across two continents.

An application has been made to Bradford Metropolitan District Council to use part of the River Aire, at Apperley Bridge, in the west of the county, to scatter remains.

A spokeswoman for the Hindu Cultural Society of Bradford told the Press Association: "Because our bodies are cremated it is very, very important for us to scatter the ashes.

"Most people, if they can afford it, travel to India but using the River Aire would allow those who couldn't afford it to also scatter ashes."

Pollution concerns

Nirmal Singh Sekhon , Chairman of the Yorkshire Sikh Community, said that many British Sikhs now felt Britain was their homeland and were happy to have their ashes scattered.

He told the Yorkshire Post newspaper: "People feel if they have lived here all their lives it is natural to have their ashes scattered here.

"Also, people can return to the site on the anniversary of their mother or father's death and say a prayer where their ashes were committed."

Local people are said to oppose the application on grounds of concerns over pollution.

Jane Glaister, Bradford Council's Arts, Heritage and Leisure Director, said that the Apperley Bridge site is one of a number of options the council is exploring.

"We have been approached by representatives of the local Hindu and Sikh communities about the possibility of allowing part of the River Aire to be used for the scattering of ashes.

"We are talking to both Hindu and Sikh groups and with the Environment Agency regarding a possible site at Apperley Bridge."

In a tradition dating more than 3,500 years, Hindus are cremated on riversides and their ashes immersed in holy waters. Hindus believe this ritual releases the soul from the body for its heavenward journey and frees it from the cycle of reincarnation.

Thousands throng the banks of the Ganges River, considered the holiest by Hindus, for cremation ceremonies each day.