Give priority to protection of rivers, says Uma Bharti

"Rivers give us life and their protection is our prime responsibility," she said.

Bharti was addressing the media before taking part in a 'maha aarti' on the banks of the Godavari river, nearly 60km from here in Dharmapuri temple town, on the occasion of 'Karthik Poornima'.

"We have a rich culture and heritage, but they have degraded in the recent times. It is the responsibility of all Indians to protect our historic culture and heritage."

Like the Ganga and the Yamuna, the Godavari has its own originality and speciality, Bharti said.

The BJP leader completed the first part of her 'Ganga Samagra Yatra' in October. The yatra, covering a distance of 2,500km in five states, started from Ganga Sagar, the place in Bay of Bengal where the holy river meets the sea, on September 21 and ended at Gangotri, Uttarakhand, on October 28.

The leg of the yatra, aimed at making the Ganga pollution-free, will start next month.

BJP National General Secretary P Muralidhar Rao and other party leaders accompanied Bharti.