Priest reading Newspaper in Haridwar, India

This Pujari/Panda (priest), sitting in his cabin reading morning newspaper. I had just finished my dip into Ganga at "Har ke Podi -Footprint of the Lord", Haridwar and noticed him deep in reading news, and immediately clicked.

These type of pujaris (priests) are sitting there from years, there are hundreds of them in Haridwar who maintain record books filled with the genealogies of Hindu families visiting the ancient city to pay homage to their dead family members. They help in performing rituals, Puja at Ganga Ghats. A particular Priest/Pujari or Panda maintains the record of families and relatives who leave there remarks on the dead person in the book.

Millions of Hindu families in India come to such priests to register their family trees, a tradition that has survived Mughal conquests, British colonialism and even the modern day Internet.