21st Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Artistic
Survival of the fittest

A boy rows a makeshift boat as he looks for recyclables in the polluted waters of river Yamuna laden with toxic foam, caused by industrial and domestic discharge, in New Delhi, India on June 25, 2022. An enormous stretch of one of India's most sacred rivers, the Yamuna, is covered with toxic foam, caused partly by high pollutants discharged from industries around the national capital. Still, hundreds of devotees offer rituals in its frothy and toxic waters, sometimes even immersing themselves in the river for a holy dip, to mark special occasions and festivals.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 06.2022
Date Uploaded: 11.2023
Photo Location: New Delhi, India
Camera: ILCE-6400
Copyright: © Mayank Makhija