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Hazards, Infrastructure, and Indigenous Politics in Sikkim, India

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PRECARITY AND POSSIBILITY AT THE MARGINS: HAZARDS, INFRASTRUCTURE, AND INDIGENOUS POLITICS IN SIKKIM, INDIA Mabel Denzin Gergan A dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Geography. Chapel Hill 2016 Approved by: Sara Smith Arturo Escobar Elizabeth Olson Gabriela Valdivia Scott Kirsch © 2016 Mabel Denzin Gergan ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT Mabel Denzin Gergan: Precarity and Possibility at the Margins: Hazards, Infrastructure, and Indigenous Politics in Sikkim, India. (Under the direction of: Dr. Sara Smith) This research aims to understand the intimate linkages between hazards, infrastructure, and indigenous politics in the context of anti-dam activism and a 6.9 magnitude earthquake in the Eastern Himalayan state of Sikkim, India. The Indian Himalayan Region, a climate change hotspot, is witnessing a massive surge in large scale infrastructural development alongside an increase in the frequency and intensity of natural hazard events. Earthquakes and landslides near hydropower project sites, along with incidents of shamanic possession by angered mountain deities, raised serious doubts about the viability of hydropower projects for both local communities and regional technocrats. I take a materialist and postcolonial approach to examine how state apathy combined with the visceral quality of ecological precarity, has prompted solidarity between disparate groups and demands for policies and projects sensitive to the region’s cultural and geo-physical particularities. I also foreground the experiences of indigenous youth to demonstrate how environmental vulnerability has a direct bearing on young people’s lives, labor, and politics. Young people are at the center of this research as it interrogates how these myriad transformations are shaping their political subjectivities, which are ultimately tied to the political, cultural, and ecological future of this region. Employing qualitative and participatory research methodologies I present a fine-grained analysis of the geo-physical iii cultural, and political processes that interrupt the centralization of state authority and environmental governance in the Himalayan region. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS When I packed my bags and left for America to start graduate school, I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into. I remember the first few days being a foggy haze of sights and sounds that seemed vaguely familiar from movies and television serials. But walking around my new neighborhood in Chapel Hill that was so different from the small, sleepy valley town of Dehradun where I grew up, a deep panic set in, “Did I make a big mistake?” Unbeknown to me, a rag-tag group of people (and I mean rag-tag in the finest sense) were also starting graduate school the same year as I was and were just as confused and scared, if not more. My time in Chapel Hill would not have been the same without this brilliant, sensitive, critical group of friends and comrades. Thank you to each one of you: Agnes Chew, Pavithra Vasudevan, Conor Harrison, Adam Beldsoe, Chris Courtheyn, Haruna Suzuki, Elissa Sampson, Brian Miles, Stevie Larson, Priscilla Ferreira Vaz, Yousuf-Al Bulushi, Mike Dimpfl, and Chris Neubert. At the University of North Carolina, I am grateful to the Geography Department and my brilliant committee members: Scott Kirsch’s curiosity for all things technology and Marcuse heavily shaped my research questions and direction. Gabriela Valdivia’s class on Political Ecology and insights on materiality and indigeneity have also been invaluable. Elizabeth Olson pushed me to think deeply through questions of methodology and theoretical frameworks relating to youth and religion. Arturo Escobar’s, Anthropology of Design course led me down unexpected but ultimately rewarding paths and whose kindness and generosity as a scholar and human being, are unmatched. I owe so much to Sara Smith, who rooted for me to come to UNC and has been the most thoughtful, kind and loving advisor, a brilliant beacon of hope for so many of us in this v dark world of academia. Her unwavering confidence in me despite the many missed deadlines and appalling first drafts of articles and chapters, have profoundly shaped my vision of mentorship. This research was made possible with the generous grants and scholarships I received over the course of my graduate career: The National Science Foundation, Center for Global Initiatives, The Carolina Asia Center, The Graduate School at UNC, and the Department of Geography. It is only while writing an acknowledgement for a doctoral dissertation that one realizes all the people and events that were at work behind the scenes, the invisible, beautiful labor performed by friends, families, and mentors. In so many ways this degree feels like a communal one, a “blessing” of the commons. The love and unceasing support of my family have been the foundation for this journey. My parents, who instilled in both my brother and I a deep love for God and showed with actions and not just words what this love looks like. My mother, with her humor and quick wit always had unexpected insights into both Sikkim and her tribe, the Lepchas. It was from hearing her childhood stories about growing up in a kingdom far far away that I first began thinking about doing research in Sikkim. My father became a geologist because he loved the mountains he grew up around in Kashmir and Ladakh, so dearly. I would like to believe that I have inherited some of that love from him and with my limited skill set I think being a geographer is as close as I can get to following in his footsteps. My brother, Matthias’ journey from engineering to theology, has been an inspirational one and despite not being in the same place for the last five years, his wisdom and humor have been a source of great comfort. My extended family in Gangtok and Mangan in Sikkim, hosted and fed me ever since I decided to start this research in 2007, their warmth and hospitality made fieldwork seem so much more than just research. Many of the contacts that I was able to make would not have been possible vi without the help of Dibya Uncle, Joe Mama and Bobby Mama. I was also fortunate to meet many like-minded folks in Sikkim and made some wonderful friends during my fieldwork. These friendships nourished me with food for thought and laughter when I most needed it: the creative folks at Echostream, Sonam Tashi Gyaltsen, Karma Sonam, Ranveer Singh, Chewang, and Jenny Bentley; Chetan Raj Shrestha, Jwala Thapa, Yojna Lama and the Sikkim University folks, Teibor and Charisma. Also a special thanks to Raman Shrestha and his wonderful bookstore, Rachna Books, that became the unofficial hangout spot for so many of us during the nail-biting Sikkimese election season. The amazing Dzongu crew, without whom this research would have been impossible, Gyatso, Dawa, Tenzing, Pintso, Kalzang, and Mayalmit, answered my questions with patience, grace and good humor and pushed me to reconsider many of my assumptions about politics and resistance. It was during my M.A. in the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) that I first decided to pursue this line of research. Without the mentorship of Bodhi Sainkupar Ranee I would not have ever considered applying for a doctorate. I remember many a rainy day in Mumbai when he would invite a group of us to his office, offer us tea and listen intently to what each of us had to say before launching into a passionate speech about changing the world. It was also here that I met my sister soul mates, Titiksha Shukla, Guangchunliu Gangmei and Rachel Nilza. Our conversations, offered refuge from the cruelty of the world TISS was exposing to us bit by bit. Here in Chapel Hill, I was fortunate to come in with a cohort of folks, who were not only brilliant, radical, and thoughtful scholars but also amazingly gifted musicians and artists. The hours spent rehearsing for a Stevie and the specters gig and then basking in the afterglow of a successful performance, shall be one of my most favorite memories of graduate school. The friendship and sister-love of Pavithra Vasudevan and Batool Zaidi, has been the bedrock of these vii last few years in Chapel Hill. Our shared love of food, Bollywood, and ‘cheap’ jokes has brought me through some very difficult times. My church-family, Greenleaf Vineyard, prayed over me and nudged me to pursue God and goodness in the midst of extremely confusing and painful spiritual seasons. Raquel Burger-Calderon has been a source of immense love and generosity from the early days of our friendship. It is in her actions and big giant heart that I see the love of Jesus Christ reflected the most clearly. More than anyone else, Ocasha Musah, bore the brunt of the stress of dissertation writing; I cannot thank him enough for his patience and good humor and for showing me how to be a better, kinder more forgiving person. And finally I want to thank Sara Smith again without her guidance, mentorship and friendship this dissertation would have never seen the light of day. I feel blessed and honored to have been her first graduate student and look forward to several more years of collaboration and friendship. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................................... xiii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION: NEGOTIATING SOVEREIGNTY AT THE MARGINS ......................................................................................................................
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