Jalyatra

About Jalyatra

Travelling the length and breadth of the country to examine traditional structures and systems of water use, the author looks at water harvesting structures of southern India-the eris and ooranis-and the gharaats, the river-run flour mills of Uttaranchal. Each system, Jacob finds, takes into account the lay of the land, available raw material, as well as the social structure and make-up of the area it serves. Thus the springs of Uttaranchal, important for water supply and social interaction, are also accurate indexes of the caste lines along which the society using them is divided. The upper castes use the water nearest the source. The author also notes that in most places, modernization of water supply and management systems, which may range from plastic pipes that have replaced the more malleable bamboo for the shyngiar to inefficient dams, has not succeeded. Insightful, extensively researched and well argued, Jalyatra: Exploring India's Traditional Water Management Systems is important for a more comprehensive understanding of traditional practices in the management of our resources. It also makes the important point that new, improved ways of doing things may not always be the best.