ABSTRACT
Chapter 13 examines new manifestations of būta worship within industrial units in the special economic zone. In this chapter, I investigate encounters between humans and deities in the industrial zone, and also the effects of būta śakti on the activities of the people in the Mangalore Special Economic Zone (MSEZ). I first examine the background of a grand ritual organised by company managers after a tragic accident occurred in the MSEZ. Next, I describe the attempt of a company executive to recover the ties between humans and the land, nature, and deities in the industrial zone. I then investigate how unexpected events in an industrial unit are often interpreted as the manifestation of a būta’s agency, and also how the būta ritual works to negotiate between the contradictory forces of technology and deities. Finally, I show the endeavours of company executives to create a transactional network between the deities and industrial workers through ritual practices, and to learn to behave appropriately as devotees of the deities. Through these investigations, I consider how the newly formed transactions between the deities and the people in the MSEZ constitute the emergence of a new umwelt.
