India, March 7 -- The water is opaque and blackish, moving sluggishly. A man slowly emerges from under it. His whole body stays submerged in the water, except for the head. He looks up, and waves at the gazer standing by the bridge.

The bridge is upon the Yamuna. The sacred river originates from the snowbound altitude of the Himalayas, falls into the plains, flows through Haryana, and then is obliged to traverse 20 very dismal kilometres through Delhi, where more than 20 drains eject their refuse into it.

While some 15 bridges span over the Yamuna along its fateful Delhi course, this bridge on the DND flyway most cinematically illustrates the bonds between the megapolis and the river. The river is spread wide, flanked by trees and tall ...