David Gilmartin

Blood and Water: The Indus River Basin in Modern History David Gilmartin

Marc Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.; The book is a history of the political and environmental transformation of the Indus basin as a result of the modern construction of the world's largest, integrated irrigation system. Begun under British colonial rule in the 19th century, this transformation continued after the region was divided between two new states, India and Pakistan, in 1947. Massive irrigation works have turned an arid region into one of dense agricultural population, but its political legacies continue to shape the politics and statecraft of the region--Provided by publisher. Table of Contents: AcknowledgmentsMaps 1. INTRODUCTION: COMMUNITY AND ENVIRONMENT2. IRRIGATION AND THE BALOCH FRONTIER3. COMMUNITY ON THE WASTE: THE VILLAGE AND THE COLONIAL PROPERTY ORDER4. STATUTE AND CUSTOM IN WATER LAW5. SCIENCE, THE STATE, AND THE ENVIRONMENT6. THE RIVER BASIN AND PARTITION7. THE INDUS WATERS TREATY AND ITS AFTERLIVES NotesBibliographyIndexBiographical Note: David Gilmartin is Distinguished Professor of History at North Carolina State University and the author of "Empire and Islam: Punjab and the Making of Pakistan."Jacket Description/Flap: An impressive achievement by a masterful historian. The book stands as the single most authoritative text on irrigation development in the Indus River basin from the nineteenth century to the present. David Ludden, author of "India and South Asia: A Short History" A clear, compelling, and carefully documented study. It will inspire students and scholars beyond South Asian studies and the modern history of colonial encounters. K. Sivaramakrishnan, Professor of Anthropology, Yale University"Publisher Marketing: The Indus basin was once an arid pastoral watershed, but by the second half of the twentieth century, it had become one of the world s most heavily irrigated and populated river basins. Launched under British colonial rule in the nineteenth century, this irrigation project spurred political, social, and environmental transformations that continued after the 1947 creation of the new states of India and Pakistan. In this first large-scale environmental history of the region, David Gilmartin focuses on the changes that occurred in the basin as a result of the implementation of the world s largest modern integrated irrigation system. This masterful work of scholarship explores how environmental transformation is tied to the creation of communities and nations, focusing on the intersection of politics, statecraft, and the environment."

Contributor Bio:  Gilmartin, David David Gilmartin is Distinguished Professor of History at North Carolina State University and the author of "Empire and Islam: Punjab and the Making of Pakistan".