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Article: Island in the stream: the oft-repeated claim that India's Majuli Island is the world's largest riverine island may not be true, but with its unique monasteries and fascinating tribal cultures, the island is a beguiling destination none the less. It's just a shame it's shrinking.(MAJULI ISLAND)
- Article from:
- Geographical
- Article date:
- December 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Circle Publishing Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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It's dusk, and our long, heavily laden boat slides out into an inky river capped by a fading ochre sky. Among its passengers are villagers, shopkeepers and a handful of mendicants, their bicycles and the odd scooter. I alone have a car; parked sideways, there is barely enough space for it: its bumpers practically overhang the gunwales.
As night falls, our pilots navigate by the glimmer of a faint moon--as well as their experience and intuition. It's a short voyage, just 90 minutes, but here in upper Assam, few treat the Brahmaputra River lightly.
I'm heading for Majuli Island, wrongly billed in numerous guidebooks and in much of the Indian media as the ...