GANGA

THE GANGETIC PLAIN The Ganga flows through Uthar Pradesh , Bihar and Bengal. The plain on either side of the river is extremely fertile , as the river and its tributaries bring fresh silt from the Himalayas, every year during monsoon. Farmers produce rice and wheat , sugarcane , mangoes , potato and other vegetables . Potatoes are bought damn cheap by the traders and sold in all towns , making fabulous profit. Farmers’ cooperatives as in Gujarath can help in securing remunerative price. Maximum mangoes are exported from UP. The farmers cut the plant , when young and ensure that they do not grow high. Mangoes can be plucked like oranges. In Keralam , we allow the tree to grow high and it becomes impossible to climb up. The soil is alluvial and there are no stones anywhere, however deep you may dig! For making houses and roads , they make bricks . At the Atomic Power Station at Narora,on the bank of the river Ganga, raft foundation is made , by casting RCC beams in the shape of a raft , very large to support buildings , to ensue that it does not sink! The site was chosen due to political pressure.. We were staying as guest of my coworker in RAPP Sarvan Singh . In his court yard , they grow potato, onion, gajar,carrot,mooli, etc. , enough for their purpose. At RAPP , it is all rock and we depended on arrivals from the villages. Ganga was the only means of transport till the British came. Now even small ships ply from Calcutta to Allahabad and beyond. All major cities like Kanpur, Allahabad ,Patna , Mughal sarai lie near the river. My great wish is to travel in a ship, along the Ganga. I was not lucky till now. The world famous Nalanda University is neat Patna. It has been revived recently. Bihar I the cradle of civilization in India. Pilgrimage Kashi is a pilgrims’ spot for Hindus . Even when there were no roads , people used to walk all the way from Keralam and Tamilnadu , to pray at Kashi Viswanath temple , after bathing in Ganga. One of my uncles stayed permanently in Cochin House in Kashi. Pollution In spite of all efforts by the Government, Ganga water is extremely polluted. The practice of throwing even half burnt dead bodies into the river must be banned. Mythology According to Hindu puran , the whole plain was dry and the sage Bhageerth, took tapasya to please Lord Siva . In the end, Shiva released Ganga , who was hiding ln his coiled long hair(to escape detection by his wife Parvathy), and the whole plain was flooded