A JOURNEY ALONG THE BRAHMAPUTRA
The Brahmaputra is by some margin the largest river in India. After its confluence with the Ganga in Bangladesh, it becomes the largest in Asia.
In The Braided River, journalist Samrat Choudhury sets out to follow its braided course from the edge of Tibet where it enters India down to where it meets the Ganga. Along the way, he meets Indian spies, visits a shelter home for baby rhino and elephant orphans, and hops from river island to riverside town meeting the locals. These tales weave in the history of the emergence of the border between India and China, the formation of the Assamese identity, and the ecological challenges posed by proposed dams. A genre-bending book that touches upon several hot-button issues.