No traces of coronavirus have been detected in the Ganga water after bodies of COVID-19 victims were recovered in Buxar, Katihar, and certain districts in Uttar Pradesh, reported a recent study by the National Mission for Clean Ganga under the Union Jal Shakti ministry, conducted in association with the Indian Institute of Toxicology Research (IITR), Lucknow, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Bihar State Pollution Control Board (BSPCB).

Ashok Ghosh, chairman of BSPCB, stated that the samples of water were collected after the bodies of COVID-19 victims were found floating in the Ganga river during the second COVID wave peak in May and June. None of the samples tested were found to have any traces of SARS-CoV-2 virus, thus suggesting that the water was not contaminated by the bodies of COVID victims… (TOI – TNN, September 10, 2021)