Landscape Of Loss: Analysing N.A. D'Souza's Dweepa Through Eco-Critical Lens

Abstract

The paper aims to establish the crucial relationship between developmental projects and displacement, making significant observations on their impact on Indigenous groups and the environment by reading N.A D’Souza’s Dweepa.  Dweepa was first published weekly in Kannada in 1970, later translated into English by Susheela Punitha in 2014 under the title Island. The study unravels the environmental crises and victimization of Indigenous communities through development-induced displacement in N. A D’Souza’s novella Dweepa. In his narrative, the author examines the repercussions of dam construction that adversely affect ecological health and traumatize the underprivileged communities living in the target areas. The author shares the lived experiences of Indigenous communities in the Shimoga district of Karnataka, which speak volumes about the failure of authorities in measuring the impact of developmental projects on local communities surrounding the target areas. The paper's conceptual framework is built around the ecocritical views of Rob Nixon and Indian environmental critics Vandana Shiva, Ramchandra Guha, and Arundhati Roy, adding to the current debates on ecological crises. The paper also underscores the urgency of addressing climate change, emphasizing that these issues should not be deferred to the future.