Unearthed: The Environmental History of Independent India

Meghaa Gupta's exploits in history are the outcome of an irrepressible urge to contextualize the challenges of the present with the past and make greater sense of the times we live in. She works in children's publishing and firmly believes that all change begins with getting children to read books that demystify the world and its infinite possibilities. Meghaa has contributed to the history book On this Day (Dorling Kindersley, 2021) and is the author of the widely-acclaimed Unearthed: An Environmental History of Independent India (Puffin, 2020). She curates the children's and youth section of the Green Lit Fest and the online magazine Sustainability Next.

Protesting against dams, protecting tigers, hugging trees, saving seeds, making room for elephants, battling mountains of waste, fighting air pollution, coping with soaring temperatures-India and its people have shared a remarkable relationship with the environment.
From the Green Revolution to the National Action Plan on Climate Change, Unearthed: An Environmental History of Independent India chronicles the country's historical movements and significant green missions since 1947. Interspersed with lots of trivia, tales of eco-heroes and humorous cartoons, this easy-to-read account uncovers the story of a past with the hope that we will rewrite India's future.

Carefully researched and lucidly written . . . the book covers a wide range of theme-forests, agriculture, air and water pollution-with balance and clarity. I recommend Unearthed to Indians of all ages seeking an accessible overview of our environmental challenges.Unearthed gives you all the important information about revolutions, movements, sectors and technology that emerged in India after independence and their effects on the environment. I would personally recommend this book because it is told in the form of a story, has comics and is very interesting to read. The book is good for anyone who wants to know about the environment or climate change.'Written for children, this book with its deep research into historical tragedies in the country, can be a great read for adults as well. Tracing key events in our history, the idea is to understand the environmental impact of the events on the landscape. Be it the Green Revolution, or Bhopal Gas Tragedy or water crisis in Chennai, never before has a book chronologically documented the collective environmental impact of these incidents. Complete with illustrations and profiles of those working in this areas with years of expertise, there is something for everyone . . . '