London, July 21, 2007 -  Sikhs and Hindus based in the United Kingdom  now need not make the 8,300- mile-long journey to India to immerse the ashes of their loved ones in the Ganges, for leaders of the Gateshead Council have agreed that a stretch of the River Derwent can be used for this purpose.

According to The Mirror, the estimated one million Hindus and Sikhs who live in Britain can now travel to Blaydon-on-Tyne to scatter the ashes on the River Derwent which flows into the River Tyne.

Ethnic Minorities Support Group chief Bahal Singh Dindsa described the council's decision as unique, one that would become a major attraction for visitors from all over the country.

Council Diversity Officer and a Hindu, Nitin Shukla, 46, said that Hindus and Sikhs required that  their loved ones ashes to be deposited on flowing water, and added that a means was being provided to do so. (ANI)