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■ The holiest place on this sacred river is the city of Varanasi, said to have been founded by the Hindu god Shiva. There pilgrims flock down flights of steps, known as ghats, to be purified by the holy water.

As the river flows across the plains of central India, it deposits fertile mud, making the land rich for farming. Rice and wheat are the most important crops, but maize, sugar cane, and cotton are also grown there.

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In 2001, an important Hindu festival, the Maha Kumbh Mela, took place in the city of Allahabad. Morę than 70 million pilgrims took part in the festival, which is only held once every 144 years.

At the edge of the delta is a huge area of mangrove forest, called the Sunderbans (in green above), which stretches from the State of West Bengal, in India, to Bangladesh. The area is a protected national park and is rich in wildlife.

The Ganges meets the Indian Ocean at the Bay of Bengal, where it forms the largest delta in the world, around 220 miles (350 km) across. This is one of the most fertile farming areas in the world.

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