A population of over 18,000 has stopped using the water of the 73-km-long Lidder River, which runs through south Kashmir’s Pahalgam town as it is unsafe for consumption because of high-level pollution. The river is a lifeline for 2,659 households. Mostly unregistered pilgrims who are not allowed to put up at the base camps dirty the river. The Supreme Court earlier this month described Pahalgam as “a very sensitive place from the environmental point of view”.