Ensconced amidst small, rolling hills, Maithon was Asia's first hydroelectricity plant built inside a mountain. Built by the Damodar Valley Corporation (a central-government entity established by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru himself), the dam was crucial to controlling the rage of the Damodar river, also known as Bengal's sorrow for the havoc it unleashed during floods. Thanks to a step-by-step containment through a series of such dams, not only has the river been controlled, it now fulfils the bulk of the energy requirements for the states of West Bengal and Jharkhand.
Despite the containment provided by the dam, certain low-lying areas towards the reservoir end of the dam get submerged during the monsoons. They then serve as fishing grounds for the local populace, who as seen here, make use of wide nets and the trees to capture their prey.
The abundance of water resources and the presence of a significantly sized reservoir mean that Maithon Dam is uniquely positioned to help out nearby regions with water scarcity. The photo above, shows the aerial shot of a pipeline established to pump water to the nearby city of Dhanbad, some odd 40 kilometres away.
Initially a village, Maithon has since the construction of the dam, become a significant settlement. The settlement here is primarily of the DVC employees and their families, along with a certain percentage of local population.
As a result, the population of the town is pretty limited and hence, pollution hasn't made any incursion here. Hence, the cloudscapes are absolutely gorgeous, the grass lush and green, the air cool and clean and a general environment of nature and freshness is preserved.
As a result of the natural beauty of the terrain, the water body, and everything else; Maithon has become a weekend tourist destination for people from nearby cities.
A shepherd from the nearby village tends to his flock as they graze. The people here lead rather quiet and self-sufficient lives with their cattle and the intensive agricultural patterns they practice.
Upon seeing me click his photos, this fine gentleman asked me if i could click a picture of his, to which I happily obliged.
A worker mows down the grassy outgrowth which are found all across the place after the monsoons. The corporation usually hires workers to do so, in order to prevent the risk of extra foliage and dangerous fauna along places that'll bear heavy public footfall from autumn onwards.
Timelapse of a sculptor working on a monolith to carve the design into it. Towards the end of the clip, he can be seen tending to another statue on the left, refining it and giving it final touches.
As mentioned above, this is the statue the worker was finishing up on. The polishing stage is still left, but the design and statue are nearly complete. These workers are very skilled what they do, but they work in cramped spaces with microparticulate matter, thereby being fatally exposed to the risk of asbestosis and other particle-based lung problems.
Cots are still an important and revenue-generating export of the region. Here, an old man can be seen hand-weaving a cot. They are surprisingly comfortable and resilient structures, and take a certain level of skill and ability to produce, as can be seen in the sinews and veins of this skilled craftsman.
Puffed rice, with potato brownies is a staple evening snack in Bengali culture. In fact, even when travelling, most Bengali tourists have a few packs of puffed rice on them as emergency ration.
The above photo captures a lady in the process of making these quintessential snacks.
The working class of Maithon is testimony that hard work and persistence are not just morals and ethics taught and forgotten about; they are a way of life without which it becomes difficult to survive.
