Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, February 24 For most people, a receding river is a sign of a drought, but for locals in Paithan town, Maharashtra, when the Godavari river levels drop, it is time for them to head to the riverbank in search of gold.
Armed with sieves and nets, people from villages around the holy town in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar flocked to the banks of the Godavari River on Monday, looking for valuables as the water receded.
The Godavari River has served as a place where grieving relatives perform final rituals for their loved ones and cast away jewelry, coins, and other valuables that belonged to them.
As the sun beat down on them, many gathered on the riverbank and waded through waist-deep waters to look for lost treasures and precious valuables, which they considered gifts from the river.
A senior official from the Paithan police station described this phenomenon as "routine."
"Whenever the river level drops, people arrive with small nets and sieves and venture into the river. They sift the silt from the river bed in search of valuables," he said.
People believe that the holy river has given them a valuable object when they find something, the official said.