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Unruly Waters: How Mountain Rivers and Monsoons Have Shaped South Asia's History
'An enthralling, elegantly written and, ultimately, profoundly alarming history' Economist
A bold new perspective on the history of South Asia, telling its story through its climate, and the long quest to tame its waters
South Asia's history has been shaped by its waters. In Unruly Waters, historian Sunil Amrith reimagines this history through the stories of its rains, rivers, coasts, rivers and seas - and of the weather-watchers and engineers, mapmakers and farmers who have sought to control them. He shows how fears and dreams of water have, throughout South Asia, shaped visions of political independence and economic development, provoked efforts to reshape nature through dams and pumps, and unleashed powerful tensions within and between nations.
Every year humans have watched with overwhelming anxiety for the nature of that year's monsoon to be revealed, with entire populations living or dying on the outcome. From the first small weather-reporting stations to today's satellites, the modern battle both to understand and manage water has literally been a matter of life or death.
Today, Asian nations are racing to construct hundreds of dams in the Himalayas, with dire environmental impacts; hundreds of millions crowd into coastal cities threatened by cyclones and storm surges. In an age of climate change, this highly original work of history is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand not only Asia's past but its future.
A bold new perspective on the history of South Asia, telling its story through its climate, and the long quest to tame its waters
South Asia's history has been shaped by its waters. In Unruly Waters, historian Sunil Amrith reimagines this history through the stories of its rains, rivers, coasts, rivers and seas - and of the weather-watchers and engineers, mapmakers and farmers who have sought to control them. He shows how fears and dreams of water have, throughout South Asia, shaped visions of political independence and economic development, provoked efforts to reshape nature through dams and pumps, and unleashed powerful tensions within and between nations.
Every year humans have watched with overwhelming anxiety for the nature of that year's monsoon to be revealed, with entire populations living or dying on the outcome. From the first small weather-reporting stations to today's satellites, the modern battle both to understand and manage water has literally been a matter of life or death.
Today, Asian nations are racing to construct hundreds of dams in the Himalayas, with dire environmental impacts; hundreds of millions crowd into coastal cities threatened by cyclones and storm surges. In an age of climate change, this highly original work of history is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand not only Asia's past but its future.
400 pages, Paperback
First published December 6, 2018
45 people are currently reading
876 people want to read
About the author
Sunil Amrith
14 books40 followersSunil Amrith is Mehra Family Professor of South Asian Studies and Professor of History, and a Director of the Joint Center for History and Economics.
Sunil Amrith grew up in Singapore, and received a B.A. (2000) and Ph.D. (2005) from the University of Cambridge. He was a research fellow of Trinity College at the University of Cambridge (2004–2006) and taught modern Asian history at Birkbeck College of the University of London (2006–2014) prior to joining the faculty of Harvard University, where he is currently Mehra Family Professor of South Asian Studies and a professor of history. He is also a director of the Harvard Center for History and Economics. His additional publications include Decolonizing International Health: India and Southeast Asia, 1930–65 (2006) and Sites of Asian Interaction: Ideas, Networks and Mobility (co-editor, 2014).
His research is on the trans-regional movement of people, ideas, and institutions, and has focused most recently on the Bay of Bengal as a region connecting South and Southeast Asia. Amrith's areas of particular interest include the history of migration, environmental history, and the history of public health. He is a 2017 MacArthur Fellow, and received the 2016 Infosys Prize in Humanities.
Sunil Amrith is a historian exploring migration in South and Southeast Asia and its role in shaping present-day social and cultural dynamics. His focus on migration, rather than political forces such as colonial empires and the formation of modern nations, demonstrates that South Asia (primarily India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka) and Southeast Asia (including Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore) are tied by centuries of movement of people and goods around and across the Bay of Bengal.
In Migration and Diaspora in Modern Asia (2011) and Crossing the Bay of Bengal (2013), Amrith combines the theoretical frameworks of oceanic and environmental history with archival, ethnographic, and visual research to chart how migration transformed individuals, families, and communities. Using narratives and records left by coastal traders, merchants, and migrants, he evokes the lives of ordinary Indians who made homes in new lands across the bay. Amrith's examination of the emergence of diverse, multiethnic coastal communities sheds new light on the social and political consequences of colonization. Colonialism diminished some of the intimate cultural, social, and economic connections among the peoples of coastal areas while enabling new ones. Many bonds finally snapped during decolonization, however, when defining national boundaries and national identity became the priority.
Amrith's analysis of the forces driving migration in Crossing the Bay of Bengal takes into account the ways in which climatic patterns around the bay defined the lives of migrants and coastal residents. He will expand on this work in his current project on the history of environmental change in Asia, focusing particularly on the monsoon in the context of a changing climate. Amrith is leading a reorientation of South and Southeast Asian history and opening new avenues for understanding the region's place in global history.
Amrith's most recent book is Unruly Waters (Basic Books and Penguin UK), a history of the struggle to understand and control water in modern South Asia. His previous book, Crossing the Bay of Bengal: The Furies of Nature and the Fortunes of Migrants (Harvard University Press, 2013) was awarded the American Historical Association's John F. Richards Prize in South Asian History in 2014. He is also the author of Migration and Diaspora in Modern Asia (Cambridge University Press, 2011), and Decolonizing International Health: South and Southeast Asia, 1930-1965 (Palgrave, 2006), as well as articles in journals including the American Historical Review, Past and Present, and Economic and Political Weekly.
Amrith sits on the editorial boards of Modern Asian Studies and is one of the series editors of the Cambr
Sunil Amrith grew up in Singapore, and received a B.A. (2000) and Ph.D. (2005) from the University of Cambridge. He was a research fellow of Trinity College at the University of Cambridge (2004–2006) and taught modern Asian history at Birkbeck College of the University of London (2006–2014) prior to joining the faculty of Harvard University, where he is currently Mehra Family Professor of South Asian Studies and a professor of history. He is also a director of the Harvard Center for History and Economics. His additional publications include Decolonizing International Health: India and Southeast Asia, 1930–65 (2006) and Sites of Asian Interaction: Ideas, Networks and Mobility (co-editor, 2014).
His research is on the trans-regional movement of people, ideas, and institutions, and has focused most recently on the Bay of Bengal as a region connecting South and Southeast Asia. Amrith's areas of particular interest include the history of migration, environmental history, and the history of public health. He is a 2017 MacArthur Fellow, and received the 2016 Infosys Prize in Humanities.
Sunil Amrith is a historian exploring migration in South and Southeast Asia and its role in shaping present-day social and cultural dynamics. His focus on migration, rather than political forces such as colonial empires and the formation of modern nations, demonstrates that South Asia (primarily India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka) and Southeast Asia (including Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore) are tied by centuries of movement of people and goods around and across the Bay of Bengal.
In Migration and Diaspora in Modern Asia (2011) and Crossing the Bay of Bengal (2013), Amrith combines the theoretical frameworks of oceanic and environmental history with archival, ethnographic, and visual research to chart how migration transformed individuals, families, and communities. Using narratives and records left by coastal traders, merchants, and migrants, he evokes the lives of ordinary Indians who made homes in new lands across the bay. Amrith's examination of the emergence of diverse, multiethnic coastal communities sheds new light on the social and political consequences of colonization. Colonialism diminished some of the intimate cultural, social, and economic connections among the peoples of coastal areas while enabling new ones. Many bonds finally snapped during decolonization, however, when defining national boundaries and national identity became the priority.
Amrith's analysis of the forces driving migration in Crossing the Bay of Bengal takes into account the ways in which climatic patterns around the bay defined the lives of migrants and coastal residents. He will expand on this work in his current project on the history of environmental change in Asia, focusing particularly on the monsoon in the context of a changing climate. Amrith is leading a reorientation of South and Southeast Asian history and opening new avenues for understanding the region's place in global history.
Amrith's most recent book is Unruly Waters (Basic Books and Penguin UK), a history of the struggle to understand and control water in modern South Asia. His previous book, Crossing the Bay of Bengal: The Furies of Nature and the Fortunes of Migrants (Harvard University Press, 2013) was awarded the American Historical Association's John F. Richards Prize in South Asian History in 2014. He is also the author of Migration and Diaspora in Modern Asia (Cambridge University Press, 2011), and Decolonizing International Health: South and Southeast Asia, 1930-1965 (Palgrave, 2006), as well as articles in journals including the American Historical Review, Past and Present, and Economic and Political Weekly.
Amrith sits on the editorial boards of Modern Asian Studies and is one of the series editors of the Cambr
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
December 23, 2018
This was a very difficult book to read.💫
I spent two months in understanding and appreciating this research. I took more than 120 notes and annotations. Unruly Waters talks about climate change, politics, human ideas and human ideologies.
Every subject is connected with the others, and everything is important to understand modern Asia.
The author starts with India and monsoons. This first part was very fascinating and enlightening, talking about climate periods in Asia, especially in Indian area. The story of the country is long, so the author chooses to focus on colonial time. It is a good choice, just because this was the time of new engineerings and new machines, that were used then in industrial locations.
Really fascinating was the description of waters-system in Asia: the Himalayans rivers run through sixteen countries, for esample, and the mountains are so big to shape Earth's climate because of concentration of snow, ice, heat and melting water.
In Asia there is more than half of the world's population, but it contains less freshwater than any continent. All twenty cities in the world with the largest populations vulnerable to rising sea levels are in Asia.
On fact is clear: we live in the world created by our earlier generations' dreams and fear of water.
Unruly Waters tells the story of how colonialism, science, politics, culture have changed Asia's world and Asia's waters the past two hundred years. The ecology of water is a consequential of moder history and of its cultural and political transitions. The landscape is like the mirror of human behavior.
This book has its focus on India because this country was central to the history of British Empire, linked to the history of climate change.
This is a well researched book; the author wrote it from 2012 to 2015, and he did a great job. The problem is that I'm not the right audience, even if I understand everything and appreciate the Historical elements in it. I was interested, for example, in the Mughal realm, that expanded in XVI century and its territory was far into South India. In the Mughal tradition of landscape architecture gardens were basic, symbolic and aesthetic places: they were places of beauty and sensual pleasure. Water was important for gardens and traditions and culture.
A lot of historical facts are described in this book, if you are a curious person I totally recomend this book.
I spent two months in understanding and appreciating this research. I took more than 120 notes and annotations. Unruly Waters talks about climate change, politics, human ideas and human ideologies.
Every subject is connected with the others, and everything is important to understand modern Asia.
The author starts with India and monsoons. This first part was very fascinating and enlightening, talking about climate periods in Asia, especially in Indian area. The story of the country is long, so the author chooses to focus on colonial time. It is a good choice, just because this was the time of new engineerings and new machines, that were used then in industrial locations.
Really fascinating was the description of waters-system in Asia: the Himalayans rivers run through sixteen countries, for esample, and the mountains are so big to shape Earth's climate because of concentration of snow, ice, heat and melting water.
In Asia there is more than half of the world's population, but it contains less freshwater than any continent. All twenty cities in the world with the largest populations vulnerable to rising sea levels are in Asia.
On fact is clear: we live in the world created by our earlier generations' dreams and fear of water.
Unruly Waters tells the story of how colonialism, science, politics, culture have changed Asia's world and Asia's waters the past two hundred years. The ecology of water is a consequential of moder history and of its cultural and political transitions. The landscape is like the mirror of human behavior.
This book has its focus on India because this country was central to the history of British Empire, linked to the history of climate change.
This is a well researched book; the author wrote it from 2012 to 2015, and he did a great job. The problem is that I'm not the right audience, even if I understand everything and appreciate the Historical elements in it. I was interested, for example, in the Mughal realm, that expanded in XVI century and its territory was far into South India. In the Mughal tradition of landscape architecture gardens were basic, symbolic and aesthetic places: they were places of beauty and sensual pleasure. Water was important for gardens and traditions and culture.
A lot of historical facts are described in this book, if you are a curious person I totally recomend this book.
June 20, 2019
Unruly Waters is the history of hydrology in India. Sounds boring? It probably is not as interesting as political or military histories but it is no less illuminating, probably even more so.
The notion of British rule as a tyanny is so ingrained that it was pleasantly surprising to read about dedicated civil servants working to solve a problem that affected people more gravely than British atrocities - the Monsoon. It makes you think that all Britishers were not in India to merely insult Indians with racist slurs.
Amrith does a meticulous job of chronicling the history of water management in India. Initially, it does appear tedious and the prose feels repetitious. However, what struck me is the incredible amount of research done by Amrith in the pursuit of this off-the-beaten-track history of India. Just reading the bibliography should be an interesting read for most and a lesson in historical writing.
Most of the book is focused on India and so the title's "Asia" reference is slightly misleading. A comparative history would've been fascinating but Amrith pays lip service to Chinese history. Maybe he didn't have time or interest in researching Chinese, Pakistani and Southeast Asian history to the same level.
The last chapters describing the current and future state of water in India makes for very distressing reading, especially if you have lived it and know that there is very little hope. I felt Amrith's references were a little weaker here than his initial chapters and he migrated from historical analysis to current policy analysis in the last chapter.
Overall, a scary book about where we are going that puts our challenges in historical perspective
The notion of British rule as a tyanny is so ingrained that it was pleasantly surprising to read about dedicated civil servants working to solve a problem that affected people more gravely than British atrocities - the Monsoon. It makes you think that all Britishers were not in India to merely insult Indians with racist slurs.
Amrith does a meticulous job of chronicling the history of water management in India. Initially, it does appear tedious and the prose feels repetitious. However, what struck me is the incredible amount of research done by Amrith in the pursuit of this off-the-beaten-track history of India. Just reading the bibliography should be an interesting read for most and a lesson in historical writing.
Most of the book is focused on India and so the title's "Asia" reference is slightly misleading. A comparative history would've been fascinating but Amrith pays lip service to Chinese history. Maybe he didn't have time or interest in researching Chinese, Pakistani and Southeast Asian history to the same level.
The last chapters describing the current and future state of water in India makes for very distressing reading, especially if you have lived it and know that there is very little hope. I felt Amrith's references were a little weaker here than his initial chapters and he migrated from historical analysis to current policy analysis in the last chapter.
Overall, a scary book about where we are going that puts our challenges in historical perspective
March 29, 2024
This book is excellent, but I have a major problem with it. The slightly sensationalist title and the way it permeates into the introduction wreaks of a rather unthinking environmental determinism. What follows is a relatively sophisticated environmental history that has many inflections of political ecology. This is a great introductory book and it is well written.
November 5, 2025
Awesome read. Some of the descriptions of situations during British Raj don't fail to give chills and horrors of food scarcity, poverty, and lack of basic needs in that era.
In fact .. I wonder still Asian populous does little to nothing in day to day life to improve this situation and, of course blame Indian government in the absence of British Raj 🤔
In fact .. I wonder still Asian populous does little to nothing in day to day life to improve this situation and, of course blame Indian government in the absence of British Raj 🤔
April 21, 2019
The subtitle of the book perfectly catches it's contents: how Himalayan rivers and the monsoon have shaped the history of South Asia. A wonderful book, at the intersection between climatology, hydrology, environmental sciences, history, geography, economics and politics.
For too long, I (and I guess most Europeans) have read the history of people outside of Europe as narrated by Europeans. This book beautifully demonstrates why we need to pay more attention to their history as told by themselves.
For too long, I (and I guess most Europeans) have read the history of people outside of Europe as narrated by Europeans. This book beautifully demonstrates why we need to pay more attention to their history as told by themselves.
November 16, 2021
My second book largely on dams and human efforts to control water for the year...definitely more focused on India than Asia at large, with interesting history and climate insights throughout.
May 14, 2022
I learned about all the important water basins in Asia and how climatology is affecting them at an alarming rate. Very gloom and doom but very insightful and fascinating history about the 2nd largest continent. Well researched and not boring at all.
Recommended and found this at my library.
Recommended and found this at my library.
June 20, 2021
This book is a great addition to the genre of historical books, which are basically dominated by either military or biographical approaches. In this book, there's a multitude of approaches to the History of South Asia from the 19th century onwards, which includes social, cultural, political, economical, and scientific approaches; the latter almost always forgotten or, best case scenario, under-developed. For me, this is one of the strongest points of this book. While every topic could have been further explored (as always, though, we'd be looking at an infinite number of pages), the author manages to introduce us to different perspectives for several of the topics that are discussed, showing that nothing is really just black or white (here, especially focused on hydrological resources and their obtainment), and that all is interconnected and frequently interdependent.
This is, however, not a book for everyone's taste because it is heavily filled with scientific information, which in a way creates a slower reading flow. And while most of the terms and phenomena are explained by the author (and there's plenty of references to help as well), some prior knowledge of climatology and environmental sciences does help quite a bit - especially as, in this case, one can automatically picture what all these phenomena are, without having to transform these concepts into images for the first time.
I would just add that the sub-title is somewhat misleading, in the sense that when it says "...South Asia's History" it leads one to think that it will encompass the whole area and not just a part of it. However, the authors does make this detail quite clear at the beginning of the book: it is, indeed, focused on India, and when mentioning other countries, these are mostly not within South Asia, even though they're all highly interconnected.
This is, however, not a book for everyone's taste because it is heavily filled with scientific information, which in a way creates a slower reading flow. And while most of the terms and phenomena are explained by the author (and there's plenty of references to help as well), some prior knowledge of climatology and environmental sciences does help quite a bit - especially as, in this case, one can automatically picture what all these phenomena are, without having to transform these concepts into images for the first time.
I would just add that the sub-title is somewhat misleading, in the sense that when it says "...South Asia's History" it leads one to think that it will encompass the whole area and not just a part of it. However, the authors does make this detail quite clear at the beginning of the book: it is, indeed, focused on India, and when mentioning other countries, these are mostly not within South Asia, even though they're all highly interconnected.
October 28, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. It's probably not for everyone; I'm especially interested in environmental issues and Unruly Waters covers meterology and hydrology especially in south Asia, from the days of the Raj up to the present and predictions of what's in store from global warming. In addition, I spent my career in I.T. and as you might suspect I worked with many colleagues who hailed from India. In fact my last gig was a part time contract job through Infosys. The managers were all Indian nationals. I remember working alongside one guy and he was reminiscing about returning to live in India after retiring. I found the book very well written and well researched, explaining the dynamics of the monsoon and the years when it failed resulting in widespread famine. It covers stupid policies of the Raj which exacerbated various famines. The Brits certainly have a lot to answer for, for the years they ran things in India. The book deals with the current fascination of dam building in India, displacing thousands and thousands of people from their homes, engulfing thousands of square miles of forestland, resulting in the loss of untold native species. They're even building dams in seismically unstable areas. And it looks to the future as global warming affects the glaciers on the Tibet plateau, where all of south, southeast, and east Asia's great rivers originate.
January 12, 2019
Given the numerous civilisations that have flourished in South Asia - from the Indus Valley Civilisation through the conquests of Alexander the Great onwards - I had expected this book to cover much of the history of humankind. In fact, it only covers the last 200 years or so - mainly from the time of the British Raj onwards.
The supply of water to this part of the world is entirely dominated by two things: the Indian Ocean monsoon and the rivers flowing from the Himalayas. They create a unique and fragile water system, and one which, in relation to the size of the population, produces only a fraction of the freshwater that the rest of the world has access to. Over the last 100 years dams and groundwater pumps have allowed South Asian nations to better irrigate their land, but these come at increasing ecological costs. Groundwater levels have fallen alarmingly, and dams built upstream deprive those further downstream of the water - meaning that control over the Himalayan sources of Asia's major rivers is becoming ever more important. One senses that year by year, the likelihood of famine, war and environmental disaster in this part of the world is getting ever more likely.
The supply of water to this part of the world is entirely dominated by two things: the Indian Ocean monsoon and the rivers flowing from the Himalayas. They create a unique and fragile water system, and one which, in relation to the size of the population, produces only a fraction of the freshwater that the rest of the world has access to. Over the last 100 years dams and groundwater pumps have allowed South Asian nations to better irrigate their land, but these come at increasing ecological costs. Groundwater levels have fallen alarmingly, and dams built upstream deprive those further downstream of the water - meaning that control over the Himalayan sources of Asia's major rivers is becoming ever more important. One senses that year by year, the likelihood of famine, war and environmental disaster in this part of the world is getting ever more likely.
December 23, 2020
A well researched and excellent book for those interested in monsoons and water management in South Asia over the last 150 years or so from colonial times to the present day. Understanding the Indian Ocean and monsoon weather patterns by British civil servants in the early Meteorological Dept of India in the 20th century only touched on the complex relationships between the oceans. This research is still ongoing and what seems obvious now is that climate change has changed the monsoons and the impact it has on agriculture.
The biggest man made changes are the thousands of dams built by India and China in harnessing major rivers emanating from the Himalayas. Recent studies question the efficacy of some of these dams on the environment, the rivers and on the local communities and only years later do people begin to understand the consequences. Yet more dams are planned !
Maybe the ancients knew better how to manage their environment and manage water efficiently. Of course, the populations were much smaller then.
The conclusions drawn are not good with some even saying the monsoons may dry up. Man’s ambitions to tame Nature do not appear to be succeeding.
The biggest man made changes are the thousands of dams built by India and China in harnessing major rivers emanating from the Himalayas. Recent studies question the efficacy of some of these dams on the environment, the rivers and on the local communities and only years later do people begin to understand the consequences. Yet more dams are planned !
Maybe the ancients knew better how to manage their environment and manage water efficiently. Of course, the populations were much smaller then.
The conclusions drawn are not good with some even saying the monsoons may dry up. Man’s ambitions to tame Nature do not appear to be succeeding.
May 6, 2021
வரப்புயர நீர் உயரும்
நீர் உயர நெல் உயரும்
நெல் உயரக் குடி உயரும்
குடி உயரக் கோல் உயரும்
கோல் உயரக் கோன் உயர்வான் என்ற ஔவையாரின் செய்யுளை பிரதமர் வாயால் கேட்கும் கொடுமையை நானும் அனுபவித்தேன். ஆனால் அது எவ்வளவு பெரிய உண்மை என்பது “Unruly Waters” என்ற புத்தகத்தை வாசித்த பின் தான் தெளிவாக புரிந்தது.
தெற்காசிய நாடுகளில் குறிப்பாக இந்திய துணைக்கண்டத்தின் வரலாற்று போக்கை தண்ணீர் எப்படி எல்லாம் மாற்றியமைத்தது, அது மக்களின் வாழ்க்கை முறையில், பழக்கவழக்கங்களில், அவர்களின் பண்பாட்டு-சமூக- பொருளாதாரத்தில் எத்தகைய மாற்றங்களை உண்டாக்கியது என்பதை மிகவும் ஆழமாக பேசுகிறது இந்நூல்.
இந்தியாவில் காலநிலை(climate) ஒரு நிச்சயமற்ற தன்மையை கொண்டது தான், அது முழுக்க முழுக்க பருவமழையை(monsoon) நம்பி தான் இயங்கி வந்தது ஒரு சில பகுதிகளை தவிர பிற இடங்களில் நிரந்தரமான நீர் பாசனம் இல்லை, பருவமழையை நம்பி தான் வாழ்வாதாரம். அந்த பருவநிலை கடல் மற்றும் நிலத்திற்கு இடையே நிலவும் தட்பவெப்ப மற்றும் அழுத்தத்தை பொறுத்து மாறுபடும். ஒரு ஆண்டு நல்ல மழை இருக்கும் சில ஆண்டுகள் மழை எதிர்பார்த்த அளவு இருக்காது, அதன் காரணமாக பஞ்சம் பட்டினி என பெரும் பாதிப்புகளை இந்திய துணைக்கண்டம் சந்தித்து வந்தது.
பிரிட்டிஷ் வருகைக்கு முன்பிருந்தே இத்தகைய சிக்கல்கள் இருந்தாலும் ஆங்கிலேயர்கள் இதற்காக ஒரு நிரந்தர தீர்வு காண முயன்றார்கள், பஞ்சம் பட்டினியை தடுக்க, நீரை சேமிக்க வேண்டும், ஆற்றில் இருந்து கடலில் வீணாக்கப்படும் தண்ணீரை பாதுகாத்தாக வேண்டும் என்று அணைகள், பாசன வசதிகள் போன்றவற்றை கட்டமைத்தார்கள் , இதில் அவர்களின் சுயநலமும் இருந்தது என்பதை மறுக்க முடியாது. மேலும் அவர்கள் இந்த நிச்சயமற்ற கால நிலையை புரிந்து கொள்ள ஆராய்ச்சியிலும் ஈடுபட்டார்கள்.
ஒரு பக்கம் இப்படி இருக்க மற்றொருபுறம் நதி வழி போக்குவரத்துக்கு தயாராகி கொண்டிருந்தது ஆங்கிலேய அரசு, ஆனால் அதற்குள் ரயில் போக்குவரத்து தொழில்நுட்பங்கள் கிடைக்கப்பெற்றதால் நீர்வழி போக்குவரத்திற்கு முக்கியத்துவம் கொடுக்கப்படவில்லை. மேலும் 1880களிலும் 1890களிலும் பட்டினியில் பல உயிர்களை தெற்காசிய இழந்து கொண்டிருந்தது. இந்த நடவடிக்கைகள் எல்லாம் ஒரு குறிப்பிட்ட அளவுக்கு தான் உதவி செய்தன.
மேலும் காந்தியும்-அம்பேத்கரும் தண்ணீரை எப்படி அணுகினார்கள் என்பது பற்றி ஒரு செய்தியும் இடம்பெற்றுள்ளது. காந்தி உப்பு சத்தியாகிரகம் நடத்தியதற்கு காரணம் இந்தியர்களிடையே ஒரு ஒற்றுமை உணர்வை ஏற்படுத்த வேண்டும் என்ற எண்ணத்தில் தான். அண்ணல் அம்பேத்கரின் மகத் சத்தியாகிரகம் மக்களிடையே ஒரு சமத்துவமும் சகோதரத்துவமும் ஏற்பட வேண்டும் என்பதற்காக ஒரு உரிமை போராட்டமாக நடத்தப்பட்டது. தங்கள் கொள்கைகளை மக்களுக்கு கடத்த நீரை ஆயுதமாகவும் அடையாளமாகவும் மாற்றி கொண்டார்கள் என்றும் பதிவு செய்கிறார்.
விடுதலைக்கு பிறகான இந்தியாவில் நேருவுக்கு முன் மிகப்பெரிய பணி இருந்தது அதில் முக்கியமான ஒன்று கட்டமைப்பு வசதி, அதிலும் குறிப்பாக நீர் பாசன வசதி ஒரு புறம் தொழில்நுட்பத்தில் அக்கறை செலுத்தினாலும் மற்றொருபுறம் அணைகள் கட்டுவதில் அவர் ஆர்வம் கொண்டிருந்தார் அவரின் கனவு திட்டமான “Bhakra nangal” அணையை கட்டமைத்தார், அதன் திறப்பு விழாவில் “இது போன்ற அணைகள் இந்தியாவின் ஆலயங்கள்” என்று புகழாரம் சூட்டினார்.
அதே சமயத்தில் தான் சீனாவும் அணைகளை கட்ட தொடங்கியது, 1950 களில் தொடங்கி இன்றுவரை ஆசிய கண்டத்தில் மட்டும் லட்சக்கணக்கில் அணைகள் கட்டப்பட்டிருக்கும் என்கிறார் நூல் ஆசிரியர், அதன் முக்கிய காரணம் பருவநிலை நிச்சயமின்மை யும் நீரை சேமித்தாகவேண்டும் என்ற கட்டாயமும் தான், மேலும் 1980 களுக்கு பிறகு மின்சார தயாரிப்புக்கு தண்ணீர் பயன்படுத்த பட்டது இதன் காரணமாக பெரிய அளவில் Hydroelectric plants உருவாக்கப்பட்டது.
இத்தகைய அணை கட்டமைப்புகள் நீரை சேமிக்க உதவினாலும் மற்றொருபுறம் பல்வேறு பாதிப்புகளை உண்டாக்கியது. அந்த பகுதியில் ஓடும் நதிகளை பலவீனப்படுத்தியது, உலகம் வெப்பமயமாதல் தடுக்க படுவதற்காக அமைக்கப்பட்ட நீர் மின்சார உற்பத்தி அணைகள் (hydro electric power plants) அதை காட்டிலும் அதிக அளவில் Greenhouse gas ஐ உற்பத்தி செய்தது, பெருவாரியான மக்கள் இடம்பெயர்த்தப்பட்டார்கள், காடுகளில் வசிக்கும் ஆதி குடிகள் பல்வேறு இன்னல்களை சந்தித்தார்கள். வளர்ச்சியா சூழல்லா என்று பார்க்கும் போது அந்த காலகட்டத்தில் வளர்ச்சி தான் முதன்மை கொள்கையாக கடைபிடிக்க பட்டது.
இதை தொடர்ந்து 1960 களில் பருவமழை தவறியதால் பெரும் பஞ்சம் ஒன்று இந்தியாவை சூழ்ந்தது, உலக நாடுகளிடம் கையேந்தும் நிலை, அதன் பின் தான் பசுமைப் புரட்சி(green revolution) ஏற்படத் தொடங்கியது. ரசாயன உரம், மரபணு மாற்றப்பட்ட விதைகள், ஆழ்துளை கிணறுகள், மின்சார மானியம் என பஞ்சத்தை சீர் செய்ய திட்டங்கள் வகுக்கப்பட்டன. இந்தியா தண்ணீர் தேவையை பூர்த்தி செய்ய ஒரு வழி முறையை கண்டுபிடித்தது. ஆனால் அதுவே பின்னாளில் பெரும் ஆபத்தை உருவாக்கும் என்று யாரும் நினைத்திருக்க மாட்டார்கள்.
ரசாயன உரம் நீரை மாசுபடுத்தியது, ஆழ்துளை கிணறுகள் நிலத்தடி நீரை குறைத்து கொண்டே வந்தது, சீனாவிலும் இதே நிலை தான். மரபணு மாற்றப்பட்ட விதைகள் பூச்சிகளுக்கும், பிற நோய்களுக்கும் எளிதாக ஆட்கொள்வதாக அமைந்தது. இது உணவு உற்பத்தியில் உபரியை(food surplus) ஏற்படுத்தினாலும் அதோடு சேர்த்து பெரிய அளவில் பாதிப்பை ஏற்படுத்தியது.
1980களுக்கு பிறகு பருவநிலை மாற்றம்(climatic change) பற்றி உலக அரங்கில் விழிப்புணர்வு எழ தொடங்கியது, அது ஏற்படுத்தும் பாதிப்புகளை உலக நாடுகள் பேச தொடங்கின, ஆனால் அதன் பின்னும் சூழ்நிலையை உணர்ந்ததாக தெரியவில்லை பருவநிலை மாற்றம் பற்றிய மாநாடுகளும் கூட்டங்களும் நடைபெற்றவண்ணம் தான் இருக்கிறது. ஒரு புறம் வளர்ச்சியை முதன்மைப்படுத்தினாலும் வளர்ச்சிக்கு கொடுக்கப்படும் முக்கியத்துவம் சூழல் சார்ந்த நடவடிக்கைகளுக்கு தரப்படுவதில்லை. இது தெற்காசிய நாடுகளில் ஏற்படுத்தபோகும் தாக்கம் பிற இடங்களை ஒப்பிடும்போது வீரியமாக இருக்கும் என்று கணிக்கப்படுகிறது.
ஊடகவியலாளர் P.sainath எழுதிய “Everybody loves a good drought” என்ற புத்தகத்தை பல இடங்களின் குறிப்பிடுகிறார். மக்களின் இடப்பெயர்வு(migration) பருவநிலை மாற்றத்தால் பெரியளவில் உந்தப்படுகிறது. அது போலவே கவிஞர் வைரமுத்து எழுதிய “கள்ளிக்காட்டு இதிகாசம்” என்று இலக்கியத்தில் இத்தகைய பாதிப்புகள் பற்றி பேசுவதாகவும் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.
நீரின் வழியாக இந்திய துணைக்கண்டத்தின் வரலாற்று போக்கையும், இங்கு நடந்த மாற்றங்களையும் அருமையாக பதிவு செய்துள்ளார், பாதிப்புகளை உணர்ந்து நாம் செயல்படும் காலகட்டத்தில் வாழ்ந்து வருகிறோம், அடுத்த தலைமுறைக்கு இந்த பொன்னுலகை கடத்த இத்தகைய சிக்கல்களையும் நாம் ஆய்வு செய்து நடவடிக்கைகள் எடுக்க வேண்டும்.
வாய்ப்புள்ள நண்பர்கள் அவசியம் படித்து பயன் பெறவும், சூழலியல் சார்ந்து இயங்கும் நண்பர்கள் தவறவிடக்கூடாத புத்தகம்.
அண்ணன் பூ.கொ. சரவணன் பதிவிலிருந்து தான் இந்த புத்தகம் பற்றி அறிந்துகொண்டேன் அவருக்கு என் அன்பும் நன்றியும் .
Book: Unruly waters
Author: Sunil S. Amrith
#Do_read
நீர் உயர நெல் உயரும்
நெல் உயரக் குடி உயரும்
குடி உயரக் கோல் உயரும்
கோல் உயரக் கோன் உயர்வான் என்ற ஔவையாரின் செய்யுளை பிரதமர் வாயால் கேட்கும் கொடுமையை நானும் அனுபவித்தேன். ஆனால் அது எவ்வளவு பெரிய உண்மை என்பது “Unruly Waters” என்ற புத்தகத்தை வாசித்த பின் தான் தெளிவாக புரிந்தது.
தெற்காசிய நாடுகளில் குறிப்பாக இந்திய துணைக்கண்டத்தின் வரலாற்று போக்கை தண்ணீர் எப்படி எல்லாம் மாற்றியமைத்தது, அது மக்களின் வாழ்க்கை முறையில், பழக்கவழக்கங்களில், அவர்களின் பண்பாட்டு-சமூக- பொருளாதாரத்தில் எத்தகைய மாற்றங்களை உண்டாக்கியது என்பதை மிகவும் ஆழமாக பேசுகிறது இந்நூல்.
இந்தியாவில் காலநிலை(climate) ஒரு நிச்சயமற்ற தன்மையை கொண்டது தான், அது முழுக்க முழுக்க பருவமழையை(monsoon) நம்பி தான் இயங்கி வந்தது ஒரு சில பகுதிகளை தவிர பிற இடங்களில் நிரந்தரமான நீர் பாசனம் இல்லை, பருவமழையை நம்பி தான் வாழ்வாதாரம். அந்த பருவநிலை கடல் மற்றும் நிலத்திற்கு இடையே நிலவும் தட்பவெப்ப மற்றும் அழுத்தத்தை பொறுத்து மாறுபடும். ஒரு ஆண்டு நல்ல மழை இருக்கும் சில ஆண்டுகள் மழை எதிர்பார்த்த அளவு இருக்காது, அதன் காரணமாக பஞ்சம் பட்டினி என பெரும் பாதிப்புகளை இந்திய துணைக்கண்டம் சந்தித்து வந்தது.
பிரிட்டிஷ் வருகைக்கு முன்பிருந்தே இத்தகைய சிக்கல்கள் இருந்தாலும் ஆங்கிலேயர்கள் இதற்காக ஒரு நிரந்தர தீர்வு காண முயன்றார்கள், பஞ்சம் பட்டினியை தடுக்க, நீரை சேமிக்க வேண்டும், ஆற்றில் இருந்து கடலில் வீணாக்கப்படும் தண்ணீரை பாதுகாத்தாக வேண்டும் என்று அணைகள், பாசன வசதிகள் போன்றவற்றை கட்டமைத்தார்கள் , இதில் அவர்களின் சுயநலமும் இருந்தது என்பதை மறுக்க முடியாது. மேலும் அவர்கள் இந்த நிச்சயமற்ற கால நிலையை புரிந்து கொள்ள ஆராய்ச்சியிலும் ஈடுபட்டார்கள்.
ஒரு பக்கம் இப்படி இருக்க மற்றொருபுறம் நதி வழி போக்குவரத்துக்கு தயாராகி கொண்டிருந்தது ஆங்கிலேய அரசு, ஆனால் அதற்குள் ரயில் போக்குவரத்து தொழில்நுட்பங்கள் கிடைக்கப்பெற்றதால் நீர்வழி போக்குவரத்திற்கு முக்கியத்துவம் கொடுக்கப்படவில்லை. மேலும் 1880களிலும் 1890களிலும் பட்டினியில் பல உயிர்களை தெற்காசிய இழந்து கொண்டிருந்தது. இந்த நடவடிக்கைகள் எல்லாம் ஒரு குறிப்பிட்ட அளவுக்கு தான் உதவி செய்தன.
மேலும் காந்தியும்-அம்பேத்கரும் தண்ணீரை எப்படி அணுகினார்கள் என்பது பற்றி ஒரு செய்தியும் இடம்பெற்றுள்ளது. காந்தி உப்பு சத்தியாகிரகம் நடத்தியதற்கு காரணம் இந்தியர்களிடையே ஒரு ஒற்றுமை உணர்வை ஏற்படுத்த வேண்டும் என்ற எண்ணத்தில் தான். அண்ணல் அம்பேத்கரின் மகத் சத்தியாகிரகம் மக்களிடையே ஒரு சமத்துவமும் சகோதரத்துவமும் ஏற்பட வேண்டும் என்பதற்காக ஒரு உரிமை போராட்டமாக நடத்தப்பட்டது. தங்கள் கொள்கைகளை மக்களுக்கு கடத்த நீரை ஆயுதமாகவும் அடையாளமாகவும் மாற்றி கொண்டார்கள் என்றும் பதிவு செய்கிறார்.
விடுதலைக்கு பிறகான இந்தியாவில் நேருவுக்கு முன் மிகப்பெரிய பணி இருந்தது அதில் முக்கியமான ஒன்று கட்டமைப்பு வசதி, அதிலும் குறிப்பாக நீர் பாசன வசதி ஒரு புறம் தொழில்நுட்பத்தில் அக்கறை செலுத்தினாலும் மற்றொருபுறம் அணைகள் கட்டுவதில் அவர் ஆர்வம் கொண்டிருந்தார் அவரின் கனவு திட்டமான “Bhakra nangal” அணையை கட்டமைத்தார், அதன் திறப்பு விழாவில் “இது போன்ற அணைகள் இந்தியாவின் ஆலயங்கள்” என்று புகழாரம் சூட்டினார்.
அதே சமயத்தில் தான் சீனாவும் அணைகளை கட்ட தொடங்கியது, 1950 களில் தொடங்கி இன்றுவரை ஆசிய கண்டத்தில் மட்டும் லட்சக்கணக்கில் அணைகள் கட்டப்பட்டிருக்கும் என்கிறார் நூல் ஆசிரியர், அதன் முக்கிய காரணம் பருவநிலை நிச்சயமின்மை யும் நீரை சேமித்தாகவேண்டும் என்ற கட்டாயமும் தான், மேலும் 1980 களுக்கு பிறகு மின்சார தயாரிப்புக்கு தண்ணீர் பயன்படுத்த பட்டது இதன் காரணமாக பெரிய அளவில் Hydroelectric plants உருவாக்கப்பட்டது.
இத்தகைய அணை கட்டமைப்புகள் நீரை சேமிக்க உதவினாலும் மற்றொருபுறம் பல்வேறு பாதிப்புகளை உண்டாக்கியது. அந்த பகுதியில் ஓடும் நதிகளை பலவீனப்படுத்தியது, உலகம் வெப்பமயமாதல் தடுக்க படுவதற்காக அமைக்கப்பட்ட நீர் மின்சார உற்பத்தி அணைகள் (hydro electric power plants) அதை காட்டிலும் அதிக அளவில் Greenhouse gas ஐ உற்பத்தி செய்தது, பெருவாரியான மக்கள் இடம்பெயர்த்தப்பட்டார்கள், காடுகளில் வசிக்கும் ஆதி குடிகள் பல்வேறு இன்னல்களை சந்தித்தார்கள். வளர்ச்சியா சூழல்லா என்று பார்க்கும் போது அந்த காலகட்டத்தில் வளர்ச்சி தான் முதன்மை கொள்கையாக கடைபிடிக்க பட்டது.
இதை தொடர்ந்து 1960 களில் பருவமழை தவறியதால் பெரும் பஞ்சம் ஒன்று இந்தியாவை சூழ்ந்தது, உலக நாடுகளிடம் கையேந்தும் நிலை, அதன் பின் தான் பசுமைப் புரட்சி(green revolution) ஏற்படத் தொடங்கியது. ரசாயன உரம், மரபணு மாற்றப்பட்ட விதைகள், ஆழ்துளை கிணறுகள், மின்சார மானியம் என பஞ்சத்தை சீர் செய்ய திட்டங்கள் வகுக்கப்பட்டன. இந்தியா தண்ணீர் தேவையை பூர்த்தி செய்ய ஒரு வழி முறையை கண்டுபிடித்தது. ஆனால் அதுவே பின்னாளில் பெரும் ஆபத்தை உருவாக்கும் என்று யாரும் நினைத்திருக்க மாட்டார்கள்.
ரசாயன உரம் நீரை மாசுபடுத்தியது, ஆழ்துளை கிணறுகள் நிலத்தடி நீரை குறைத்து கொண்டே வந்தது, சீனாவிலும் இதே நிலை தான். மரபணு மாற்றப்பட்ட விதைகள் பூச்சிகளுக்கும், பிற நோய்களுக்கும் எளிதாக ஆட்கொள்வதாக அமைந்தது. இது உணவு உற்பத்தியில் உபரியை(food surplus) ஏற்படுத்தினாலும் அதோடு சேர்த்து பெரிய அளவில் பாதிப்பை ஏற்படுத்தியது.
1980களுக்கு பிறகு பருவநிலை மாற்றம்(climatic change) பற்றி உலக அரங்கில் விழிப்புணர்வு எழ தொடங்கியது, அது ஏற்படுத்தும் பாதிப்புகளை உலக நாடுகள் பேச தொடங்கின, ஆனால் அதன் பின்னும் சூழ்நிலையை உணர்ந்ததாக தெரியவில்லை பருவநிலை மாற்றம் பற்றிய மாநாடுகளும் கூட்டங்களும் நடைபெற்றவண்ணம் தான் இருக்கிறது. ஒரு புறம் வளர்ச்சியை முதன்மைப்படுத்தினாலும் வளர்ச்சிக்கு கொடுக்கப்படும் முக்கியத்துவம் சூழல் சார்ந்த நடவடிக்கைகளுக்கு தரப்படுவதில்லை. இது தெற்காசிய நாடுகளில் ஏற்படுத்தபோகும் தாக்கம் பிற இடங்களை ஒப்பிடும்போது வீரியமாக இருக்கும் என்று கணிக்கப்படுகிறது.
ஊடகவியலாளர் P.sainath எழுதிய “Everybody loves a good drought” என்ற புத்தகத்தை பல இடங்களின் குறிப்பிடுகிறார். மக்களின் இடப்பெயர்வு(migration) பருவநிலை மாற்றத்தால் பெரியளவில் உந்தப்படுகிறது. அது போலவே கவிஞர் வைரமுத்து எழுதிய “கள்ளிக்காட்டு இதிகாசம்” என்று இலக்கியத்தில் இத்தகைய பாதிப்புகள் பற்றி பேசுவதாகவும் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.
நீரின் வழியாக இந்திய துணைக்கண்டத்தின் வரலாற்று போக்கையும், இங்கு நடந்த மாற்றங்களையும் அருமையாக பதிவு செய்துள்ளார், பாதிப்புகளை உணர்ந்து நாம் செயல்படும் காலகட்டத்தில் வாழ்ந்து வருகிறோம், அடுத்த தலைமுறைக்கு இந்த பொன்னுலகை கடத்த இத்தகைய சிக்கல்களையும் நாம் ஆய்வு செய்து நடவடிக்கைகள் எடுக்க வேண்டும்.
வாய்ப்புள்ள நண்பர்கள் அவசியம் படித்து பயன் பெறவும், சூழலியல் சார்ந்து இயங்கும் நண்பர்கள் தவறவிடக்கூடாத புத்தகம்.
அண்ணன் பூ.கொ. சரவணன் பதிவிலிருந்து தான் இந்த புத்தகம் பற்றி அறிந்துகொண்டேன் அவருக்கு என் அன்பும் நன்றியும் .
Book: Unruly waters
Author: Sunil S. Amrith
#Do_read
September 15, 2020
A very interesting insight into how the quest for water in colonial India shaped British policy and activities, and has continued to shape those of the independent government. I was expecting this to cover more of Asia, but the discussion of India and the Himalayas was very well done.
November 12, 2020
Amrith paints an unbiased picture of Asia's history with a focus on water. He has clearly put in years of archival research along with documenting his travels through India which intermingle to provide contrasts between the old and new.
December 22, 2020
Wish it included more of Southeast and East Asia, but as far as South Asia goes, perfect!
July 2, 2025
I enjoyed most (in italics) of 'Unruly Waters' but it suffered from perhaps excess ambition and a lack of focus. It was a book about a lot of things, most related to the role of water in the history, present and future of Asia but mainly on the Indian subcontinent.
Was it the usual indictment of colonialism? Naturally! Coming from a Harvard academic what else would you expect? Nowhere does he question that colonialism was anything but an unmitigated evil and possibly had benefits to India as well as detriments. But the Empire bashing was not too over the top and some of it of course is deserved.
Was it a history of the Indian monsoon and the meteorological efforts to understand and hopefully predict it? Yes, and that part was winning for me. The contributions and discoveries of early meteorologists (many of them more like polymaths) included such luminaries as Henry Piddington (first to use the word 'cyclone'), Henry Blandford (one of the first to attempt seasonal predictions of the Indian Monsoon, using variations in Himalayan snowpack), Sir Gilbert Walker (who developed the concept of the Southern Oscillation) and Jacob Bjerknes (who first proposed the ENSO mechanism and named the Walker Circulation). Other subsequent key researchers (Colin Ramage, Roger Revelle, Charles Keeling, etc.) are given some space as part of the larger and more complex story of the evolving science of climate change. I would say he did a pretty nice job with the atmospheric science concepts and explanations, considering his non-meteorological background.
Was it a story of hydraulic engineering and its impact on Asian waterways? Yes, and again the research into the people and ideas is excellent and fascinating. In fact, he starts the second chapter with a visit to a museum near Rajahmundry, India dedicated another Brit, Sir Arthur Cotton who was water engineer in India during the mid-1800s in India and still regarded as something of a hero. There are extensive discussions on dams and water projects some amazing for their time (the Ganges Canal), others probably not good ideas. He goes into the history of the Bhakra Nangal Project in northwest Punjab India, sort of a Hoover Dam sized project in the 1950s. A famous Bollywood film was made about it, 'Mother India', which I actually watched for 10 minutes (no subtitles). Dams and their continuing proliferation across Asia was another key theme--the numbers are staggering (see China as well) and you really can't blame that on the Brits. Even larger projects are ongoing to shift water resources across major river basins, notably in China with the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, diverting Yangtze River water to the Yellow River basin. The scale is staggering and problematic yet India is considering an even larger project involving 37 rivers! Groundwater depletion was another area of inquiry, especially as it pertained to the 'Green Revolution'.
Was it an analysis of the role of water in the history, geopolitics, and development of India (and to much lesser extent other Asian countries)? Yes, and that is fairly well done from the colonial period right up to the present. Water in many places is likely to become a focus for conflict or at least tension, especially in Tibet where China is systematically damming rivers emerging from the Himalayas, water critical to both Pakistan and India. Speaking of geopolitics, one of the better anecdotes was the claim that LBJ became sort of an expert on the vagaries of the Indian Monsoon (p. 250) due to his interest in food shipments to India and with regard to U.S. weather control efforts in SE Asia.
Was it a diatribe on the impacts and dangers of climate change? Of course, but with a focused take on the possible impact on Asian water supplies. And also a rage against 'inequality' as if solving such a thing were actually possible and moreover would change one outcome of the myriad crises he enumerates revolving around water--too much, too little, too dirty, too unequal, too..wet. I appreciated the effort but it pulled in so many directions that I felt like a mental Gumby (for those of a certain age) at times. Perhaps if he had concentrated solely on India (which was by far the major focus) it might have worked better. Overall 3.5 stars (rounded up), 4 for the content but -0.5 for the diffusion or dilution (haha) of the message, whichever one it was!
Was it the usual indictment of colonialism? Naturally! Coming from a Harvard academic what else would you expect? Nowhere does he question that colonialism was anything but an unmitigated evil and possibly had benefits to India as well as detriments. But the Empire bashing was not too over the top and some of it of course is deserved.
Was it a history of the Indian monsoon and the meteorological efforts to understand and hopefully predict it? Yes, and that part was winning for me. The contributions and discoveries of early meteorologists (many of them more like polymaths) included such luminaries as Henry Piddington (first to use the word 'cyclone'), Henry Blandford (one of the first to attempt seasonal predictions of the Indian Monsoon, using variations in Himalayan snowpack), Sir Gilbert Walker (who developed the concept of the Southern Oscillation) and Jacob Bjerknes (who first proposed the ENSO mechanism and named the Walker Circulation). Other subsequent key researchers (Colin Ramage, Roger Revelle, Charles Keeling, etc.) are given some space as part of the larger and more complex story of the evolving science of climate change. I would say he did a pretty nice job with the atmospheric science concepts and explanations, considering his non-meteorological background.
Was it a story of hydraulic engineering and its impact on Asian waterways? Yes, and again the research into the people and ideas is excellent and fascinating. In fact, he starts the second chapter with a visit to a museum near Rajahmundry, India dedicated another Brit, Sir Arthur Cotton who was water engineer in India during the mid-1800s in India and still regarded as something of a hero. There are extensive discussions on dams and water projects some amazing for their time (the Ganges Canal), others probably not good ideas. He goes into the history of the Bhakra Nangal Project in northwest Punjab India, sort of a Hoover Dam sized project in the 1950s. A famous Bollywood film was made about it, 'Mother India', which I actually watched for 10 minutes (no subtitles). Dams and their continuing proliferation across Asia was another key theme--the numbers are staggering (see China as well) and you really can't blame that on the Brits. Even larger projects are ongoing to shift water resources across major river basins, notably in China with the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, diverting Yangtze River water to the Yellow River basin. The scale is staggering and problematic yet India is considering an even larger project involving 37 rivers! Groundwater depletion was another area of inquiry, especially as it pertained to the 'Green Revolution'.
Was it an analysis of the role of water in the history, geopolitics, and development of India (and to much lesser extent other Asian countries)? Yes, and that is fairly well done from the colonial period right up to the present. Water in many places is likely to become a focus for conflict or at least tension, especially in Tibet where China is systematically damming rivers emerging from the Himalayas, water critical to both Pakistan and India. Speaking of geopolitics, one of the better anecdotes was the claim that LBJ became sort of an expert on the vagaries of the Indian Monsoon (p. 250) due to his interest in food shipments to India and with regard to U.S. weather control efforts in SE Asia.
Was it a diatribe on the impacts and dangers of climate change? Of course, but with a focused take on the possible impact on Asian water supplies. And also a rage against 'inequality' as if solving such a thing were actually possible and moreover would change one outcome of the myriad crises he enumerates revolving around water--too much, too little, too dirty, too unequal, too..wet. I appreciated the effort but it pulled in so many directions that I felt like a mental Gumby (for those of a certain age) at times. Perhaps if he had concentrated solely on India (which was by far the major focus) it might have worked better. Overall 3.5 stars (rounded up), 4 for the content but -0.5 for the diffusion or dilution (haha) of the message, whichever one it was!
March 29, 2021
It is quite a boring book to read, especially if you are drawn by its title and expecting the book to elaborate the relationship between south-east Asia's climate and history of the region. To start with, the scope of this book is very limited and focus solely on India. Also, the genre of this book is more like history of technology, as characterised by the generous portions of the book dedicated to trace the development of India's meteorology and hydraulic engineering. Fairly speaking, the author did attempt to interpret some key episodes in modern Indian history with climate, such as the flourishing of Punjab and the partition of India and Pakistan, albeit inadequate. This is no a disappointing book - if you are interested in the meteorological development of India in last two centuries.
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March 15, 2022Kanwar Sain was the chairman of the India’s Water Central Commission. He along with another engineer (Rao) searched globally to address the modernization of water systems in independent India. Kanwar Sain concluded that China had more useful lessons than Soviet Russia.
July 9, 2023
A long and winding story about the history and prevalence of water in the story of South Asia. It was very informative and opened my eyes to an aspect of life that I sometimes don't ever have to deal with.
April 25, 2025
The book mostly covers India's waterways and a bit of China but not much on other Asian countries. However Sunil Amrith provides an entertaining look at how water affects a country as it does for India.
June 15, 2019
more like a history of india then about water, rivers..
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December 11, 2023Water Resources of Oriental Despotism
September 29, 2024
Fascinating.... and disconcerting in terms of the future of the monsoon.
July 20, 2025
well-researched but I wish it were a little less long-winded
May 1, 2019
Nice book but the content doesn't justify an impressive title. Author has provided a lot of information but insights are missing. Water will indeed shape our future but this book is not telling us how.
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