“All this week, Americans have been waking up to an extraordinary story about the Ganges,” writes Sree. This is the series on National Public Radio. (But look also at the CNN-IBN story “The Ganga is Dying.”)

The caption for the photo above reads: “A woman collects water at one of the ghats, or steps, down to the shore of the Ganges, which Indians refer to as Mother Ganga. Heathcliff O’Malley/Telegraph Media Group © 2007.” And the caption for the photo below: “Rajiv Gope (front) is a gang leader in Mokama, a city in the poverty-stricken state of Bihar. Heathcliff O’Malley/Telegraph Media Group © 2007.” The story that accompanies that photo, which is of obvious interest to me:

We leave Varanasi and travel by train to Bihar. Some Hindus believe that history is an endless series of cycles, each dawning in a golden age but degenerating into an age of darkness. By traditional reckoning, we’re now in a dark age.

Certainly, Bihar seems to be.

Buddhism plays a major part in the history of this north Indian state, which attracts many pilgrims. But these days Bihar is better known for poverty, crime and corruption.

We drive to the town of Mokama, near the banks of the Ganges. Two rival gangs plague the town; they make their money by extortion and kidnapping. We set off to meet members of one of them.

Twenty-one-year-old Rajiv Gope and his friends live wild in the woods, outside town, and near the river.

We find them lurking among the trees, eyeing us cautiously. They are masked; one is carrying a small axe. They agree to talk, though only briefly, as they’re worried about being caught by the police.

Our guides tell us Gope is wanted for murder and kidnapping.

As you’ll hear, our conversation with him provides a very different glimpse into India — into a world of young Indians utterly alienated from society.