Rage of the River

On 17 June 2013 a normally calm Mandakini came crashing down from the hills in Uttarakhand and destroyed everything in its path houses bridges dams and the town of Kedarnath. Thousands of people perished and lakhs lost their livelihood.Three years after the disaster stories from the valley-of pain and sorrow the state governments indifference and the corporate goof-ups and the courage and heroism shown by the locals in the face of an absolute catastrophe-still remain largely unheard of.While the government continues to remain in denial and chooses to ignore the environmental issues in Uttarakhand the ravaged Kedarnath valley continues to haunt us-though the temple has been restored given its religious importance and centrality to the local economy. NDTV journalist Hridayesh Joshi covered the floods in 2013 exposing the governments apathy and inefficiency. He was the first journalist to reach Kedarnath after the disaster and brought to light the stories from the most remote parts of the state areas cut off from the rest of the world. Woven into this haunting narrative is also the remarkable history of the ordinary peoples struggle to save the states ecology. Rage of the River is a riveting commentary on the socio-environmental landscape of Uttarakhand and is filled with vivid imagery of the calamity. About the Author Hridayesh Joshi is senior editor National Affairs NDTV India.