"Out of all of the world's rivers,
the Ganges alone is a self-purifying system."
says the message posted by Yogiharinambabaprem,
in American Institute of Vedic Studies
Text & audio link:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17134270
Audio duration: 14 mins
TEXT (abstarct):
National Public Radio reported:
"New scientific evidence supports the claim
that water flowing in India's holy Ganges river --
where millions of people bathe daily --
has special self-purifying properties,
which act as a disinfectant that kills bacteria,
and prevents disease.
In the fourth installment of a six-part
series recorded for NPR,
independent film producer Julian Crandall Hollick
investigated the claim that the Ganges had something special
in its water,
which he called
the 'mysterious X factor'.
The report stated,
'Hindus have always believed that water
from India's Ganges River has extraordinary powers.
The Indian emperor Akbar called it
the 'water of immortality'
and always traveled with a supply.
The British East India Co.
used only Ganges water on its ships
during the three-month
journey back to England,
because it stayed 'sweet and fresh'.'
Hollick found a retired professor of hydrology, DS Bhargava,
who has been investigating water samples
from various parts of the river.
He says that the oxygen levels in the Ganges'
are '25 times higher than any other river in the world',
which gives it its self-purifying quality.
Hollick also interviewed Jay Ramachandran,
a Molecular biologist and entrepreneur in Bangalore,
who explained why the Ganges
doesn't spread disease
among its bathers.
The high amount of oxygen in the water helps
assimilate organic materials,
and helpful bacteria destroys harmful
bacteria.
Large amounts of people bathing in the river seems
to stimulate the helpful bacteria to act upon the bacteria
that is harmful to humans.
The Ganges alone out of all of the world's rivers is a self-purifying
system."
