Opinion Finding Saraswati

The past is another country, but there appears to be great political acumen in building a bridge — perhaps, a Ram Setu — to it. Hence, while the current Indian Council of Historical Research head, a self-avowed slayer of demonic Marxist history, has taken it upon himself to date the Mahabharata war so that future generations do not mistake the epic for a myth, the Union minister for water resources and rural development, Uma Bharti, is leading the charge on a mission to trace the course of the river Saraswati. To those who came in late, Saraswati is that enigma of ancient Indian history over whose arid and subterranean bed historians are ever ready to fight bloody battles.

Eulogised in the Vedas as the “best” or “foremost” of rivers, “pure in her course from mountains to the ocean”, it is supposed to have flowed in what is now north India nearly 3,000 years ago, and to have surpassed even the mighty Indus. What remains of this great river? The answer to that question has eluded scientists, satellite searches and previous governments whenever they have embarked on similar missions. Some dismiss its existence outright, others have reached a dead end at the Ghaggar, a river in Haryana that flows intermittently and disappears into a desert, as the Saraswati is supposed to have. But Bharti has not been dissuaded from such a potentially dry quest, despite the fact that many existing rivers — even if dying, like the Yamuna — need her urgent attention.

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The Supreme Court has helpfully reminded the government of affairs more current than the vexations of 3,000 years ago. It has asked for an action plan to clean the Ganga within two weeks, especially since the BJP manifesto pledges to ensure the river’s well-being. Before this government lets its enthusiasm for the ancient wash away more resources, a change of course might be in order.