In Bombay's factories, thanks to foreign investment, they are finally carting away the Dickensian machinery of the British Empire. But Hindu fundamentalists denounce this as 'economic colonialism' and are as keen to expel the multinationals from India as they are to quash the minority Muslims. At a Hindu festival, extremists excite racial and religious tensions as crowds of young Hindus wheel a freshly painted effigy of Ganesh, the traditional vanquisher of foreign foes, into the Arabian sea. In the quiet village of Veldur where buffaloes loll in the waves, fishermen moan about a new site for ENRON, an American multinational. Dependent on mangoes, fish and cashew nuts, villagers dread the devastation associated with industrial development. This local discontent is one more political skirmish in the battle for India's commercial future. Despite widespread social tension, India's leaders have decided that foreign investment is indispensable. As India mobilises to catch up with the West, Veldur will become the first casualty of many.