One such recent photo of many vacant bottles of liquor at Rishikesh has reignited the discussion regarding the effects of tourism within the town. Rishikesh, resting along the riverbank of revered River Ganga in Uttarakhand, serves as an important spiritual center of Hindu pilgrims and invites pilgrims from the entire globe to its temples and ashrams.
The photo of such large numbers of liquor bottles in this sacred town has outraged some netizens, many of whom attribute the decline in spirituality of Rishikesh to the influence of tourism. They opine that the town is losing its soul as it becomes more and more connected with activities such as drinking and smoking, as opposed to spirituality. The picture has generated polarized views online, with some calling for tourism to be lessened.
Earlier this month, The Himadri Foundation posted a picture on Instagram featuring dozens of bottles of empty alcohol and trash bags along the River Ganga. In the background, a temple can be seen. The caption labeled Rishikesh as “The Growing Graveyard of Spirituality,” lamenting the town’s deterioration because of tourism and attendant problems.
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The foundation penned, “Rishikesh, which was once a haven of spirituality and innocence, is gradually losing its soul. The peaceful ghats where once echoed the chants and meditative silence are now strewn with beer and whisky cans.” They further asked, “Smoking cigarettes along the sacred river has become a norm. Is this what Maa Ganga represents? Is this what Rishikesh was supposed to turn into?”
The post struck a chord with many who blamed tourism for deteriorating Rishikesh and urged tourists to stay away from the town.
This photograph of #Rishikesh with empty liquor bottles has gone viral on social media. Several influencers with large following are saying that don’t come to #Uttarakhand and #Himachal this summer and that Maa Ganga does not need this empty liquor bottles and all sorts of trash.… pic.twitter.com/GpnjDunrly
— Anoop Nautiyal (@Anoopnautiyal1) March 23, 2025
Others, however, did not see it that way and argued that blaming tourism for the discarded bottles was not seeing the whole picture. They noted that tourism brings a big chunk of the state’s economy, and most locals rely on it to sustain their livelihoods. X user Saurabh Sachar posted, “If all visitors stopped visiting Uttarakhand and Himachal during the summer that’d be economic disaster for plenty of locals whose income is massively dependent on tourism.”
Some countered that the problem was deeper and that X user Manu was one of those who said, “This is actual ignorance to hold tourists responsible for internal mishaps. Liquor is also a part of locals’ lives. Everyone knows it’s easy to win votes with just one bottle of liquor in UKD. Drinking isn’t a sin in India.”
Others provided possible answers, proposing stricter laws against littering in order to maintain the spiritual atmosphere of the town. Abhishek commented, “The state cannot remain without tourists. The only alternative is to keep the places spick and span and impose bans against littering on the ground. Uttarakhand requires tourist police – for assisting and keeping an eye on tourists.
