There is more water than land in north Bihar. The rivers that ramble down from the Himalaya feed numerous depressions scattered all over the plains making wetlands innumerable, one of the most productive ecosystems on Earth. Rich in flora and fauna, it is here that makhana (foxnut) fruit is cultivated, and the lesser-known singhara (water chestnut), too. Fishing is one of the most important sources of income. Unfortunately, in the last few decades many of the waterbodies have either dried up or have been reclaimed for agriculture. The rest have been reduced to cesspools of foul-smelling filth. The fragile interface between land and water is threatened, and along with that, the lives of the thousands of people who depend on them. Policy-makers do not realise that this part of the state has a water economy, not a land economy. The poverty of the state reflects the mental poverty that goes into planning for north Bihar