ABSTRACT
In India, it is only during the last few years that socio-ecological problems have come to be perceived as matters deserving serious attention. Damming rivers is one type of developmental activity that has important socio-ecological implications. This chapter considers a general way the nature of linkage between high dams and anthropological research with examples from other parts of the world such as, The Kariba dam in Africa, the hydroelectric dam of Itaipu and the Aswan High Dam of Egypt, and discusses the Brahmaputra proposals. A dam is a structure built across a stream or river to hold back water in the form of a reservoir or lake which may then be used for a number of purposes: generation of hydroelectric power, reduction of peak discharge of flood water. The harnessing of the water resources of the Brahmaputra and its tributaries, and the feasibility of constructing high dams in the north-eastern region have been considered, by various governmental agencies since 1950s.
