Arati B Baruah 
NORTHEAST INDIA IN THE VERTICAL GORGE OF TSANGPO 
climate change and the crisis of Brahmaputra

     For the benefit of Assamese readers outside India, Coolgrove Press is publishing (2021) Dr. Arati Baruah’s book titled Koilashor Pora Tsangpor Thio Gorat Utter-pub Bharat: Jalabayusalani, Brahmaputrarsankat (with the English title: Northeast India in the Vertical Gorge of Tsangpo: climate change and the crisis of Brahmaputra). It was first published in India with favorable reviews in Assam in 2020. An English version of the above work by the author is being prepared at Coolgrove, provisionally titled, Save the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra, Protect the Vertical Pole and Freeze Global Warming.

As the titles suggest, when it comes to international border crossing rivers, complex factors not limited to environmental, topographical and geological, affect the people who live in those river valleys.

However, when man-made disasters break upstream, problems cascades downstream where the people often pay the heavier price, though not always, in the long term. Treaties governed by international law need to be in place to enforce accountability for the responsible parties for such tragedies. Transcending national self-interest, the prevention of such disasters in mutual recognition of the loss of traditional lands and lives lost on both sides of the border need to be considered urgently. Such scenarios exist all over the world and require a closer look at the intentions and genuineness of the negotiating parties. Shifting the national aims from mindless and greedy exploitation of nature to mutual, good neighborly co-management of the ecosystems of such river valleys can instead support peace and prosperity on both sides of the river. Topographical geopolitics, historical perceptions and the good faith of the parties become crucial factors in the dynamics of negotiations. But governments come and governments go yet the lives, hopes and dreams of the people of valleys on both sides remain determined by the existence and absence of such guardrails. 

Referring to Tibet as the ‘Vertical Pole’, the author reminds us that Tibet, also known as the ‘Roof of the World’, is actually and spectacularly, the source of all the great rivers of Asia. Let us not forget that both the Ganges and the Brahmaputra as well as other smaller rivers flowing south into India begin in Tibet, fed by glacial melt cascading down the numerous creases of the Himalayas. In the interest of identifying the long view for both sides the border and the world by example, the works offer readers a localized and heartfelt perspective regarding the consequences of the topography and the geology of the long mountainous border region between India and Tibet-China, with an urgent appeal for both countries and the entire world, to pay closer attention to these issues and to take action to avoid catastrophes in the making.