Mass Bathing Alters Bacterial Load, Diversity

Bacterial populations in the river undergo huge loss in diversity but a steep increase in bacterial load when millions of people bathe at designated bathing sites during Kumbh Mela, the National Centre for Cell Science, Pune, found.

About the Study

The study was carried out in 2015 at five bathing sites in the Godavari River in Nashik and the results were published in the journal Microbial Ecology. Samples were collected prior to and during the Mela allowing the scientists to compare the spatiotemporal changes to water quality and bacterial communities.

Microbial Diversity Loss

• The loss in microbial diversity was nearly ....