In the upper Himalayas, where the Ganga’s tributaries still run swift and cold, a coalition of local communities, scientists, and spiritual leaders is waging an unlikely battle against sand mining and hydropower dams that have silenced dozens of mountain streams.
The Alaknanda and Bhagirathi — the two source streams of the Ganga — have lost nearly 40% of their monsoon flow in two decades. Glacial retreat, forest clearance, and unchecked construction in fragile river valleys have combined to stress these arteries of northern India’s water supply.
‘We have turned rivers into drains,’ says Dr Ravi Chopra, who has spent thirty years documenting the Ganga basin. His team’s latest survey found 23 species of freshwater fish missing from stretches declared clean by official monitoring stations.
The Supreme Court’s Ganga rejuvenation orders remain largely on paper. But at the grassroots, a new generation of water stewards — many of them women — is patrolling river banks, planting riparian forests, and holding local officials accountable.
