An Open Defecation Free Initiative: A Tribute to the Sacredness of Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar, lssue Brief, March 2018

Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar are highly revered as sacred places of worship by four major religions (Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and pre-Buddhist animistic Bon). The landscape has numerous monasteries and retreat sites. It is also a headwater source of four major Asian rivers (Sutlej, Karnali, Brahmaputra and Indus). These aspects of the landscape require it to be clean and free of pollution. Proper sanitation and clean surroundings are also essential for promoting tourism that provides local livelihood co-benefits.