Dialectics of development dams and deconstructing cultural narratives and political negotiations a comparative study of dam development projects in Lahaul and Spiti and Kinnaur districts of Himachal Pradesh India

Abstract

The research journey was reflexive (Mead 1934; Fleming 1998; Kingdom 2005; Stevenson 1996; Lupten 1997), if not entirely auto-ethnographic, because of my ethnicity and emotional bonds to my place of birth. In my formative years, I witnessed destruction, caused by the construction of dams in the Kinnaur valley and as I added years to my life, I saw dams being built in the name of development in the pristine valley of Lahaul and Spiti and then a major tunnel being dug to facilitate year-round connectivity to Rohtang-Pass. Dialectics of development and deconstruction of cultural narratives that defined the roadmap for political negotiationsin other words rhetoric of compulsions of development challenged my research aspirations. With a view to having a comprehensive understanding of this rhetoric, the introductory chapter of the thesis began with a general overview of the worldwide concept of developmentand#8223; (Gow 2002; Goldin and Reinert 2006; Khagram 2009). Developmentand#8223; as explained in the larger understanding with respect to national, international and local events that imply economic, cultural, political and environmental changes. The brief note on natural disasters speaks on the recurring instances of flash floods, landslides and earthquakes toppling the normalcy of day-to-day life in the Himalayan region as an unintended consequence of charted course of development. Unintended consequences had now become potential threats and residents were apprehensive of future disasters. The collective consciousness of the locals was demanding measures to check further exploitation of limited resources of the valleys. newline