The year was 2022 and we were on one of our most adventurous holidays — a hiking trip across Uttarakhand . After scaling the hills and meadows from Auli to Chopta, soaking in the stunning views and marvelling at how skilled the nature gods are at creating the world (just as skilled as humans are at destroying it), we were standing at a height of 855 feet at the Tehri Dam, with the backdrop of the Himalayas and the spectacular Bhagirathi River flowing between the mountains.

“Thank you for bringing us here,” I told our driver. He forced a smile and stared at the river down below. “Can you see what’s under the river?” he asked me. And before I could answer, he said, “I can.”

He explained how his home in the town of Old Tehri in Garhwal was submerged under the Bhagirathi along with many vi

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