"SAMTSE, Bhutan — Monsoon rains have finally passed and floods blocking the lone dirt road have retreated enough for a small truck to climb these Himalayan foothills to a gurgling spring. It spews water so fresh that people here call it nectar.

Workers inside a small plant ferry sleek glass bottles along a conveyer. The bottles, filled with a whoosh of this natural mineral water, are labeled, packed into cases and placed inside a truck for a long ride.

Ganesh Iyer, who heads the operation, watches like a nervous dad, later pulling out his phone, as any proud parent might, to show the underground cavern the waters have formed in this pristine kingdom, the world’s last Shangri-La."

Martha Irvine and Dar Yasin report for the Associated Press November 21, 2023. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Takeaways On Fine Water, A Growing Trend For The Privileged In A World That’s Increasingly Thirsty" (AP) [3]