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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
A heartbreaking look at India's past, present and future through the lens of its main river Ganges - or rather, its national water-scarce drain saturated with faeces, decaying corpses, plastic, industrial waste, fertilisers and antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Demonstrates the tragedy of the commons in full effect - not too surprising given a corrupt, incompetent and overly bureaucratic government and a nonchalant, uneducated, hyper-religious population that is breeding at a stunning rate. Given India's penchant for spectacular over-promising, one truly wonders if all the grandoise measures announced by the Modi administration can indeed lead to the Ganges being resurrected and restored akin to the success stories of the Thames and Rhine.
Book was written well and eloquently, and is a good mix of travelogue, history, current-day factoids and environmental musings. Could have been better edited, though - the structure and flow of the book seemed disjointed and intermittent at times (or perhaps this was deliberately mirroring the Ganges itself) - for instance, the chapter on Bollywood felt redundant and the ending of book was a tad too abrupt.
Nevertheless a very engaging, informative and troubling read.
Demonstrates the tragedy of the commons in full effect - not too surprising given a corrupt, incompetent and overly bureaucratic government and a nonchalant, uneducated, hyper-religious population that is breeding at a stunning rate. Given India's penchant for spectacular over-promising, one truly wonders if all the grandoise measures announced by the Modi administration can indeed lead to the Ganges being resurrected and restored akin to the success stories of the Thames and Rhine.
Book was written well and eloquently, and is a good mix of travelogue, history, current-day factoids and environmental musings. Could have been better edited, though - the structure and flow of the book seemed disjointed and intermittent at times (or perhaps this was deliberately mirroring the Ganges itself) - for instance, the chapter on Bollywood felt redundant and the ending of book was a tad too abrupt.
Nevertheless a very engaging, informative and troubling read.
challenging
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
The book touches upon various parts of Ganges/Ganga and is mostly told for a foreign audience. The author also uses the opportunity to describe various facets of India. It is a great introduction to the river and the problems that it faces. The author meets various people along the way including some of the tannery owners, sailors and sadhus and provides their stories as well.
I wish he would have spent more time on the solutions to which he dedicates just a small chapter and less time on some of the chapters like Bollywood's take on the Ganga.
I wish he would have spent more time on the solutions to which he dedicates just a small chapter and less time on some of the chapters like Bollywood's take on the Ganga.