Environmental Resilience in the Braj Pilgrimage Circuit

Abstract

One of the most important cultural landscape of Braj‚ a pilgrimage circuit consisting of the towns of Mathura‚ Vrindavan‚ Barsana‚ Govardhan and Nandgaon‚ is visited by millions of devotees from all over the world․ However‚ the destination faces issues such as over-tourism‚ urban encroachment‚ lack of waste management‚ and environmental fragility․ The study assesses tourists' perceptions on environmental quality of Braj circuit based on water quality‚ waste management‚ and noise pollution levels at the main pilgrimage destinations of the circuit․ This descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study collected quantitative data from 250 participants using questionnaires with a five-point Likert scale․ The study attempts to compare urban pilgrimage centres with more rural heritage sites to explore how spatial variations impact perceptions of imageability․ The results suggest that Mathura and Vrindavan urban centres are under higher environmental stress in regard to the perceived increase in waste pollution and noise‚ whereas rural centres provide a better environment‚ with increasing tourism pressure․ Hence‚ the study suggests sustainable management of pilgrimage tourism‚ integrated waste management and a thorough land-use plan while taking into account the cultural heritage of the sacred landscape‚ with stakeholder involvement‚ to enable the Braj ecosystem to sustain itself․