one more vital river. one more state. one more abused community. one more feather in the cap of 'development of india'.

welcome folks to the new india where there is enough bandwidth to carry internet traffic but not enough basic drinking water for hundreds of millions of people.

welcome friends to the land that taught civilisation to the rest of the world but where the very foundations where the civilisations originated - the rivers - are dying

welcome strangers where one small section of india booms choking the chests of the vital ecosystem and marginalised communities.

one more vital river.....

kerala, the land of rivers and land of cultural beauty would soon be classified as land of dying/dead rivers and gradually the very culture that is based on rivers is destroyed.

the beautiful manimala river of alapuzha district is the latest casaulty (or feather if you will) in the face of development of india.

many rivers of kerala are meeting the same fate as manimala river wherein the heart of the river is stabbed beyond healing by means of massive illegal sand mining and unless urgent action is taken it will be very very late even to see water in kerala. if this is the devlopment we want, the less said the better.

(the vital manimala river with almost zero safeguards is becoming yet another feather in the cap of development of india. picture from hindu shows the disappearing river bank on easter side of the river) (the mesmerizing manimala river as it flows in central kerala. a vital river now on death bed in many places)