May environment & people

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Editorial

Advisors BIODIVERSITY AND EMPLOYMENT
Narne Prabhakar
Kaza Krishna Rao The International Day for Biological Diversity is being celebrated on 22nd May every year.
Dr. N. Harinath This Day comes within the scope of Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals. Goal
Prof. Umapathi Varma No.15 states to sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse
Dr. V. Haraprasad land degradation, halt biodiversity loss. Let us face the following facts. Deforestation to the
extent of 13 million hectares and desertification to the extent of 3.6 billion hectares is taking
Advisory Board place every year. Around 1.6 billion people depend on forests for their livelihoods and half of
M. Gopala Krishna, IAS (Retd.) them are indigenous people. Forests are home for almost 80% of animals, plants and insects.
M. Kamal Naidu I.F.S, (Retd) Fish provide 20% of animal protein to about 3 billion people and over 80% of the human diet
C.S. Ramalakshmi, I.F.S, is provided by plants. Unfortunately due to mono cropping in several parts of the world, only
Dr. N. Bhaskara Rao 3 cereals - rice, maize and wheat provide 60% of energy intake. 80% of people living in rural
Prof. P.G. Sastry areas in developing countries rely on traditional plant based medicines for basic healthcare.
Er. G.Prabhakar Many indigenous fruits and green leafy vegetables are rich in micronutrients.While recogniz-
Prof. D.N. Reddy ing the conservation of biodiversity; we have to think of enhancing urban and rural livelihoods
Dr. Rameshwar Rao of vulnerable populations. The new areas are to be selected in the sectors like agriculture, fish-
S. Raghupathy eries and forestry to generate employment. In the case of agriculture, horticultural sector has
Prof. I.V. Muralikrishna to be expanded to produce new varieties of fruits and vegetables depending upon the agro cli-
matic conditions in those areas. Bio fertilizer and bio pesticides production on decentralized
Editor basis can provide more number of jobs. Organic farming and multiple cropping have to be
Dr. P. Narayana Rao encouraged to for preventing land degradation. The development of new seed varieties that
have high nutritional value has to be taken up as it provides additional food security.
Associate Editor Application of traditional knowledge is essential in preserving the plant biodiversity.
Dr.B.Ramana Naik Sustainable aquaculture can provide jobs for millions of people in the coastal areas. Several cos-
metics are based on nuts or seeds from tropical forests that can be exploited for export orient-
Sub - editor ed industry. Pharmaceutical industry is increasingly dependent on plant genetic resources. By
Swarajyam P. encouraging medicinal plants cultivation, millions of rural people can be provided livelihoods.
Our urban park spaces can be used for planting medicinal herbs and flowers and can be main-
Design tained by self help groups. Floriculture is another area that can be thought of to create large
[email protected] number of jobs. Lastly this year's World Biodiversity Day's theme is 0n biodiversity and sus-
tainable tourism. Eco tourism can be promoted to generate jobs around national parks and
Edited, Printed & Published by other nature sites. In all the above areas, people's participation is the only way for conserving
P. Narayana Rao on behalf of society biodiversity for future generations.
for environment and education,
hyderabad. May 2017 1 Environment & people

Address for communication
302, Padma Nilayam,
St.No. 1, Shanti Nagar,
Hyderabad - 500 028.

email: [email protected]
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(The views expressed by authors
may not be necessarily be the same
as those of magazine)

Importance of Yoga in life content 3
4
Western Ghats Coffee Plantations 9
Sustain High Bird Diversity in India 12
Are Now Climbing Higher to Nest
India has an Ammonia problem but no policy to deal with it 14
Could a Pest of the Honey Industry Clean up Plastic Waste? 16
As Mining Resumes, Villagers in Goa's Sonshi Say It's 21
'Back to Hell'
A child steps up to demand climate action 22
Eco Tourism
18 24
Why India Must Heed the 26
Cracking of a Haryana-Sized Ice Shelf in Antarctica 27
A Defence Against the Next Flu Pandemic Could Lie 28
in the Skin of a Western Ghats Frog 30
Mumbai beaches are world's most polluted: Study 31
Eco IQ 32
Well, as unique as this
Eco quotes
Environmental conferences in May
Eco cartoons

The poisons we play with everyday 6 Wind power passes inflexion point in India 10

Environment & people 2 May 2017

In a recent study, scientists have found mammals, birds and bats. In India’s bills are found in much higher densities in
that the coffee, rubber and areca agro- Western Ghats, small and isolated protect- coffee. These birds play a very important
forests in Karnataka support 204 bird ed areas are embedded in a matrix of mul- role of seed-dispersal and maintenance of
species including 13 bird species found tiple land-uses, most of which include agro- forest trees in the region”, says Shashank
exclusively in the Western Ghats, high- forests. These agroforests are being Dalvi who is a co-author of the paper and
lighting the supplementary role of agro- increasingly recognized for their supple- one of the leading ornithologists in the
forests in conserving wildlife. mentary role in conserving wildlife. This country.
study evaluated bird diversity in areca, cof-
Highlights: fee and rubber agroforests, which are the The scientists found a clear positive
One of largest scientific assessments of most widely grown plantation crops in association of tree density and tree cover in
Karnataka’s Western Ghats. the surrounding areas on bird diversity.
tropical birds in the world, covering an area Changing agricultural practices that open-
of 30,000 sq km in Karnataka The study, “Producing Diversity: up shade tree canopy or switching from
Agroforests Sustain Avian Richness and coffee and areca to monoculture crops such
Coffee, rubber and areca agroforests Abundance in India’s Western Ghats,” as rubber can seriously damage the ability
found to support 204 bird species, includ- appears in the current edition of Frontiers of these agroforests to support birds.
ing 13 endemic birds of the Western Ghats in Ecology and Evolution. Dr. Krithi K.
Karanth (Associate Conservation Scientist, Agroforests of the Western Ghats play a
Coffee is richer in birds than areca and WCS-NY), lead author of the paper stated critical supplementary role in conserving
rubber, but all three agroforests are impor- that “this effort involved intensive India’s birds. The authors note that the bio-
tant for bird conservation in the Ghats research in 187 plantations covering an diversity value of agroforests discovered in
area of 30,000 sq km – taking the team two the study should be incorporated into
Tree cover is an important factor asso- years to complete. This is one of most com- future planning and policy decisions to
ciated with higher bird species richness prehensive assessments of tropical bird facilitate and promote long-term biodiver-
diversity outside protected areas conduct- sity conservation. These scientific results
Globally, it is recognized that agricul- ed in the world”. should be integrated with policy and mar-
tural plantations and agroforests host a kets so that biodiversity rich agroforests
diversity of insects, amphibians, reptiles, The study finds that coffee agroforests can be incentivized to promote sustainable
support higher diversity and abundance of farming practices that enhance birds in cof-
birds when compared to areca and rubber, fee, rubber and areca agroforests.
and found 13 endemic bird species. “Large-
bodied frugivores like pigeons and horn- (Source: conservationindia.org)

May 2017 3 Environment & people

By Sreelatha Menon warm enough. It also means that some found higher than that then." Finding black
birds may have shifted their nesting places francolins at 2,800 m also surprised him
"I had seen black francolins at to higher or lower altitudes in the past - for the same reason: "I had seen them at
1,400 m in the late 1990s and and may continue to do so into the future. 1,400 m in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
early 2000s, but now the maxi- They would never go higher. But now the
mum elevation for them has Elsen and Kalyanaraman elucidated the maximum elevation for them has changed
changed to 2,800 meters." link between the presence of birds and the to 2,800 meters."
climate as they tallied their sightings with
In 2013, Ramnarayan Kalyanaraman the ambient temperature at which they "Throughout my time in GHNP, I saw
and Paul Elsen began a two-year study were spotted. They recorded the tempera- several black francolins at elevations as
of 70 Himalayan bird species. They were ture using weather stations they had set up high as 2,800 m, which is hundreds of
interested in the distribution patterns of every 350 meters (vertically). Their conclu- meters higher than the known elevational
Himalayan birds as well as in exploring the sions were also bolstered by testing multi- range of the species," Eisen told The Wire.
links between where the birds were found ple hypotheses using statistical models - "It's possible other species have also shifted
and changes in the local temperature, and anecdotes from longtime observers of their ranges upslope, tracking warming
breeding habitat and the presence of com- the area. temperatures. But without historic data,
peting species along mountain slopes. these trends are uncertain."
For example, WII's Ramesh
Kalyanaraman was with the Himal Krishnamurthy had seen the great barbet The birds that selected their breeding
Prakriti nature trust in Uttarakhand. Elsen at 1,200 m two decades ago, when he range based on the prevailing temperature
was a conservation biologist at Princeton worked at the Great Himalayan National - about 50% of the species in the surveilled
University, New Jersey. Their study was Park (GHNP), Kullu. "They were never area - were not much influenced by compe-
being conducted together with the Wildlife tition from other species already in the
Institute of India (WII). range. On the other hand, the type of habi-
tat mattered to about 40% of them.
They found that 50% of the birds stud-
ied occurred where they do because of the Elsen, his Indian support team and sev-
temperature of the place. In a warming eral local assistants spent two summers
world, this is important information: it among selected bird trails of the GHNP and
means some birds can now be found higher in the Askot Wildlife Sanctuary,
up mountains if the local temperature is Uttarakhand, between altitudes of 2,000 m
and 4,050 m. "In each place we observed
birds in five trails that ascended entire
mountain sides," Kalyanaraman says. They
went twice in the morning and once in the
evening - "and walked up and down in an
altitudinal band of 350 metres" - and revis-
ited each place after a fortnight.

They recorded the species of birds,
their numbers, their behaviour and the
altitude. They also measured the tempera-
ture and humidity there, above and below.
And once every 50 meters along these

Environment & people 4 May 2017

trails, Elsen and his team also counted and identi-
fied all the tree species, since they make up an
important part of the birds' habitats. For instance,
the golden bush robin goes up to 4,000 meters dur-
ing the breeding season and lives among rocks and
grass in a terrain where there are hardly any trees,
says Kalyanaraman.

What factors determined why species like the
golden bush robin were found where they are had
previously been unknown. But now, we may expect
the golden bush robin to seek even higher breeding
grounds 20 or 30 years later.

"Previous studies from around the world - but
not in the Himalayas - have compared historical
surveys from the early 1900s to surveys done
recently, and have seen birds shifting their ranges,
primarily to higher elevations tracking tempera-
tures as they increase up mountainsides," as Elsen
says. "Because we found that about half of the
species of the Himalayas are limited by tempera-
ture, we would expect that future warming would
result in similar shifts in species distributions."

The Princeton-WII findings are now part of a
new study by the National Mission for Sustaining
the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHES), under
India's environment ministry, according to
Krishnamurthy. In turn, the NMSHES is being
overseen by the WII, which participated in the
study. "The Himalayan mission … is [trying] to
make predictions for various species of not only
birds but even mammals and aquatic creatures
based on different models for global warming that
are available."

The follow-up study is likely to go on for the
next five years. "We will know what will happen to
the range limits of various species, and which
species are most vulnerable."

The Elsen et al discovery comes even as inter-
national efforts are on to restrict the degree of
global warming. The Paris Agreement on climate
change committed the majority of countries
throughout the world to restricting global warming
to 2º C above pre-industrial levels, but it also urged
countries to try to keep it to 1.5º C.

At the same time, other recent studies have
predicted that even if temperatures are restricted
to these targets, the world will still experience
deadly heat waves more regularly than it currently
does.

A study by researchers from UK and Ireland
published in the Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences said this month that even
with only 1.5 ºC of global warming, many megaci-
ties could become heat stressed, exposing more
than 350 million more people to deadly heat by
2050.

(Source: thewire.in)

May 2017 5 Environment & people

Darryl D'Monte Globally, some 100,000 chemicals are Toxicity around us
commercially marketed, of which the EU This is particularly after incidents like
From the paints in our homes to the accounts for a third. The American
discarded CFL tubes, the sources of Chemical Society has registered as many as in 1976 in Seveso, near Milan, where an
toxic chemicals that pose a serious 50 million chemicals of all types. Three accident in a small chemical plant, belong-
threat to our health and safety are conventions govern the use of toxic chemi- ing to a subsidiary of the Roche group, led
omnipresent. Darryl D'Monte highlights cals: to the highly toxic pollutant dioxin being
why it is imperative for India to move released into the atmosphere.
faster and more determinedly in tackling The Basel Convention controls the
this problem. movements of hazardous waste and their Exactly a decade later, there was an
disposal across national borders. accident at an agrochemical storehouse in
Despite warning signals all around, not Basel, Switzerland, which released tonnes
least in the burgeoning increase in people The Rotterdam Convention calls of chemicals into the Rhine river. It was
contracting cancer, the threat to our health upon countries - exporters and importers - nicknamed "ChernoBasel" after the nuclear
and safety from toxic chemicals is little - to share liability on hazardous wastes. accident in Chernobyl that same year.
understood.
The Stockholm Convention seeks to The situation in India regarding toxic
At a workshop in Delhi on 24 February restrict or eliminate the production and substances is particularly problematic due
2016 organised by the NGO Toxics Link, use of persistent organic pollutants or to the abysmal lack of knowledge about
Lesley Onyon, Regional Advisor, POPs. There was a "dirty dozen" of such them. One of the clear and present dangers
Occupational Health and Chemical Safety particularly dangerous chemicals, but these is the presence of lead in paints.
from the World Health Organisation are now 21 and growing.
(WHO), outlined how such chemicals cur- Toxics Link had conducted a study of
rently have a global turnover of $2.4 bil- The fact that these three conventions this sector in 2007. The Bureau of Indian
lion, which is estimated to double by 2030. are named after European cities speaks for Standards (BIS) imposed a voluntary
the fact that there is that much more restriction of 90 parts per million (ppm) of
awareness of this issue in the EU.

Environment & people 6 May 2017

lead in paints. Bigger companies are adher- lead from the mid-1970s but it took a full The Hon'ble High Court of Madras took the
ing to this, but small and medium enter- three decades for India to follow suit. settlement agreement on record. As part of
prises are not. Even Nepal has made 90 Something as sensitive as the chemicals in the agreement, HUL, with an objective to
ppm mandatory. plastics in feeding bottles and other uses is ensure long term wellbeing of its former
another cause for concern. The EU has workers, has agreed to provide ex gratia
The US, EU and Japan banned such use banned the use of phthalates in these bot- payments to 591 workers/association
of lead since the 1970s, which the WHO tles. members and their families to be used
considers the number one contaminant, towards livelihood enhancement projects
according to Ravi Agarwal, who heads One of the most toxic substances and skill enhancement programmes." Now
Toxics Link. known in the world is mercury. As chil- these conventional thermometers are
dren, many have played with these silvery, being replaced by digital models all over the
Children are prone to such contamina- slippery globules when a thermometer world.
tion because they are exposed within the broke. Considering that physicians often
four walls of a house. This can lower a put such thermometers in the mouth of India, as is well known, fares the worst
child's IQ by a tenth and there is no safe patients, this hazard is that much greater. when it comes to the presence of DDT in
limit. However, the lead is totally replace- It is a neurotoxin which can penetrate the breast milk. A few decades ago, when most
able and it is only added to increase the skin, affecting the kidney and neurological countries hadn't yet banned the use of DDT
intensity of colours. system. as a pesticide, environmentalists had a cau-
tionary poster depicting a human breast
In the early 1920s, it ought to be Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) has just with the catch line: "Milk in these contain-
remembered, when US oil and chemical concluded an agreement to compensate ers is unfit for human consumption."
companies and automobile manufacturers - workmen for the exposure to mercury in its
- General Motors, Du Pont and Standard Kodaikanal plant, in the hills of Tamil With city after city in the country
Oil of New Jersey (known nowadays as Nadu. The plant moved there from the US. throwing up their hands in despair at the
Exxon) -- wanted to add lead in petrol to It imported mercury from the US and sold ever-increasing mountains of garbage - the
stop engines from knocking, there were thermometers to the US and EU. But work- mouldering pyres of Deonar in Mumbai
hardly any dissenting voices. ers complained of ailments. The discovery being a classic instance - municipalities are
of broken glass in the shola forests near the turning to incinerators as the way out.
As a former head of the US plant only added to allegations against the Three are planned in Delhi.
Environment Protection Agency once told company. Greenpeace also weighed in, and
the US Society of Environmental the plant was closed in 2001. However, there is the omnipresent dan-
Journalists, this single intervention was ger of dioxin being left as a residue after
more responsible for retarding the mental According to the company, "HUL signed incineration. Considering that India and
growth of children throughout the world a settlement on humanitarian grounds other developing countries differ from oth-
than any other. with former workers on 4 March, 2016. ers because rag pickers forage in such

The US began to phase out the use of

May 2017 7 Environment & people

dumping yards, the authorities need to be emitting diode(LED) lights is compounding route is a terrifying prospect.
doubly careful with such disposal systems. the problem of disposal of CFL tubes, which In Uttarakhand, medical waste has been
E-waste contain small amounts of mercury.
emptied in the Mandakini river. In Bihar,
Another source of toxic exposure is the Toxics Link took the issue to the bags of hospital waste duly separated in red
disposal of light bulbs. The replacement of National Green Tribunal, which ordered the and yellow bags, have been found on the
compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) by light- Ministry of Environment, Central Pollution roadside.
Control Board and BIS to respond late last
year. While officials have sought to down- India alone administers 4.2 billion injec-
play the threat, arguing that such lamps tions a year. There are medicines still
contained very little mercury, the NGO remaining in the syringes and the syringes
pointed out that a single gram of mercury themselves need to be disposed off without
could contaminate a one-acre lake. the possibility of their reuse. As many as 60
per cent of the syringes being used - or,
Last month the ministry drafted a plan more correctly, reused - in the country are
for extended producer responsibility, where- thought to be unsafe.
by manufacturers would take back old CFL
lamps for Rs 10. WHO and other organisations are work-
ing out simple and cheaper methods of dis-
Medical waste posing of medical waste in poor countries. It
Toxics Link has also been campaigning has held global competitions for such
design, in which Indians have received an
for the safe disposal of medical waste, which honourable mention. This includes the use
comes under the Basel Convention. Like of solar power to dispose of such waste
organic and non-organic waste in house- effectively.
holds, such waste may be segregated in hos-
pitals but is often mixed with other garbage With such an overwhelming emphasis
at dumping grounds. on "Make in India" and industrialisation,
there is every reason to fear that the precau-
In 2009, there was an outbreak of hepa- tionary principle may be abandoned in the
titis B in Modasa, Gujarat, in which 125 peo- thrust to increase the growth rate. The
ple were infected and 49 died. The reuse of "silent springs" of poisons seeping into our
contaminated needles and syringes were bodies may well become a torrent in the
thought to be one of the causes. The danger process.
of getting infected with HIV through this
(Source: www.indiatogether.org)

ASPARAGUS CAN Asparagus, along with other vegetables such as Brussel
HELP YOU COMBAT sprouts and kale, are packed with glutathione, a powerful
substance that helps combat free radicals and carcinogens.
CANCER
Not only that, but asparagus are also rich in various
antioxidants which can also help prevent the formation of
free radicals.

While not powerful enough to combat cancer all on its
own, adding it to your diet does help minimize the risk of
various types of cancer, particularly those that happen
without external stimuli.

There’s no denying that a healthy diet with properly
sized portions is the key to weight loss; however, eating cer-
tain foods do make things easier and asparagus is one of
those little “magic” foods that will help you keep your
weight in check.

Asparagus is low in calories, with a cup of raw asparagus
having around 30 calories total.

Asparagus is full of fiber, which can keep you feeling full
for longer, meaning you won’t feel the need to snack as
often. This can result in weight loss, as you’ll find it easier
to eat less than usual.

Environment & people 8 May 2017

India Has an Ammonia Problem

but No Policy to Deal With It

By Sreelatha Menon research scientist in atmospheric and were different in different places. In India
oceanic science at UMD, told The Wire, that and China, agriculture was to blame thanks
Scientists think nitrogen, an their study provided 'measurement evi- to fertilisers and the mismanagement of
dence'. animal waste. However, the researchers
important part of ammonia, noted that ammonia concentrations here
"We observed for the first time that have not increased nearly as quickly as they
could become "the next carbon" atmospheric ammonia concentrations have have over other regions. This is a deceptive
been [for over a decade] in data recorded statement. According to Chandra Bhushan,
if its use isn't properly regulat- over global agricultural areas," she said. a deputy director general at the Centre for
"Increased ammonia emissions, combined Science and Environment, New Delhi, the
ed. with industrial pollution of acids, can pro- ammonia reacts with sulphur dioxide and
duce aerosols that are harmful for human nitrogen oxide, emitted by the combustion
Using satellite data available for the health." of fossil fuels, to form haze - which is also
last 14 years, researchers have harmful to health.
shown that a thick blanket of toxic But on the flipside: "In most of the
ammonia lies over the world's major agri- world, ammonia emissions are not regulat- In the US and Europe, neither fertilis-
cultural areas, with India being the worst ed, except for a few countries in Europe," ers nor animal waste was the chief culprit,
affected. Warner admitted. "There are a lot of wastes but measures taken to prevent acid rain
in fertiliser use and agricultural residue that in turn led to the accumulation of
It is emitted mainly by ammonia-based burnings that contribute to increasing ammonia.
fertilisers as well as poorly managed animal ammonia emissions."
waste. India has the second-largest land Yash Abrol, who heads the Indian
area under farming (159.7 million Vinay Aneja, a professor at the State Nitrogen Group, an advocacy body to pro-
hectares) and its fertiliser use per hectare University of North Carolina and co-author mote ammonia regulations in India, said
stands at 165 kg (World Bank 2014). of an earlier study on ammonia emissions, there are no relevant policies in place at
However, the country has no policy to reg- said just about 30% of the ammonia in fer- present, and that his group is working on
ulate ammonia emissions. tilisers is actually used by the crops. The measures to change this.
remaining 70% is wasted.
The presence of gaseous ammonia has "Nitrogen is the next carbon," Aneja
dangerous implications for human health. He told The Wire, "Researchers have said. "While carbon led to the industrial
It is a part of forms of particulate matter been working on this issue of 'nitrogen use revolution, nitrogen gave us the agricultur-
that damage the human lungs and respira- efficiency' in agriculture and so policy will al revolution. But the unhealthy and unreg-
tory tract. The compound is also toxic take time. But ammonia emissions from ulated use of nitrogen will be as bad as an
when it contaminates water sources, creat- animal waste can be managed - as is being excess of carbon."
ing harmful algal blooms and dead zones done in Europe,."
with low oxygen levels. Bhushan added, "With Delhi sitting
Ammonia is part of a group of com- between Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and
The study, by a team from the pounds called reactive nitrogens. "Only the Punjab - all urea-using areas - some of the
University of Maryland (UMD), College oxides in this group are addressed in the US pollution in the capital can be attributed to
Park, used data from NASA's Atmospheric while ammonia is left out," according to the urea use in the surrounding areas."
Infrared Sounder (AIRS) satellite instru- Aneja.
ment to find steadily increasing ammonia (Source: thewire.in)
concentrations from 2002 to 2016 over The UMD study also found that the fac-
agricultural centers in the United States, tors responsible for ammonia emissions
Europe, China and India. Juying Warner,
the study's lead author and an associate

May 2017 9 Environment & people

Wind power passes
inflexion point in India

Soumya Sarkar Industry leaders, regulators and govern-
ment officials were unanimous in pre-
Already accounting for 9% of dicting a bright outlook for the wind
India's total installed energy power sector that has been growing at a
capacity, wind power looks to breakneck speed in recent times.
add another 6GW this year, an
unprecedented expansion The importance of the Indian wind
that will help the country over- market was underlined by the fact that
shoot its Paris climate pact the Global Wind Energy Council
commitments (GWEC), which represents the industry
worldwide, chose to launch its Global
The mood was buoyant at the Wind Report 2016 at the Delhi powwow.
Windergy India 2017 conference A widely used source of data, the report
held in New Delhi this week. in its five-year market forecast painted a
rosy picture of the Indian scenario.

India has set a new national record
with 3.6 GW of new installations, push-
ing it into fourth place in terms of annu-
al capacity growth, and cementing its
fourth place position in cumulative
terms, after China, the US and Germany,
GWEC's annual report said. For the
eighth year in a row, Asia was the world's
largest regional market for new wind
power development in 2016, with capac-
ity additions totalling just over 27.7 GW.

"Wind power is now successfully
competing with heavily subsidised
incumbents across the globe, building
new industries, creating hundreds of
thousands of jobs and leading the way
towards a clean energy future," GWEC

Environment & people 10 May 2017

Secretary General Steve Sawyer said in a be contributed by wind power," said Tulsi "The industry needs further clarity in
statement. "We are well into a period of dis- R. Tanti, Chairman and Managing Director policy, particularly at the state level," cau-
ruptive change, moving away from power of Suzlon Group, the country's top wind tioned Sumant Sinha, Chairman and
systems centred on a few large, polluting turbine maker. "With the right incentives, Managing Director, ReNew Power
plants towards markets increasingly domi- the industry is capable of adding as much Ventures. "Unless the challenges thrown up
nated by a range of widely distributed as 10GW in installed capacity every year." by this stage of transition are met, capacity
renewable energy sources." See: installation (in the near term) may fall off a
Renewables drive creative destruction of Overshooting Paris pledge cliff."
energy landscape India has been making fast progress in
Sinha however said that payments
Rapid growth the renewable energy sector. It intends to from distribution utilities are improving.
India aims to build wind farms and generate as much as 56.5% of its electricity Delayed payments from stressed power dis-
from non-fossil fuel sources by 2027, the tribution utilities have been a pain point
installations to add at least 6GW of capaci- government has estimated in its energy for renewable projects. Most of the distrib-
ty every year for the next five years, a high plan. This puts India far ahead of its Paris utors are also unable to comply with the
pace of growth that looks possible because commitment of meeting 40% of its energy national renewable purchase obligation
of recent investor interest and the emerg- needs from non-fossil fuel electricity announced in 2016.
ing change in tariff regime in the wind sec- sources by 2030. See: Renewables sprint
tor. See: Strong tailwind powers bids for ahead of Paris pledge Green corridor
new wind farms Integrating with the electricity grid has
Among renewables, wind power
"India will certainly overachieve its accounted for over 57% of India's installed always been a challenge for renewable ener-
wind target," Gireesh B. Pradhan, capacity, GWEC said. India's wind power gy. To address this, the government has ini-
Chairperson and Chief Executive, Central installations accounted for a 6.6% share of tiated a programme facilitate interstate
Electricity Regulatory Commission, said at the global market in 2016. Wind power transmission. The government's Green
the Windergy conference. "The perform- capacity accounted for over 9.1% of total Energy Corridor initiative to facilitate the
ance of the wind sector has been spectacu- domestic installed capacity, according to transfer of power from the high renewable
lar." India's Central Electricity Authority. energy installation states to other parts of
the country is also progressing quite well,
The country will auction projects to In 2016, the majority of wind farms according to Indian Wind Turbine
install 6GW of wind power this year, have come up in the windy states of Manufacturing Association (IWTMA).
according to Rajeev Kapoor, Secretary, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra
Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and Andhra Pradesh. These projects were The industry lobby group said that
(MNRE). Out of this, the state-owned Solar built by large independent power produc- although 28 states and union territories
Energy Corporation of India Ltd (SECI) will ers such as Renew Power, Hero Future, have a defined RPO for renewables, the
auction 2GW within a month, Kapoor said. Continuum, Orange, Mytrah and Oriental renewable energy certificate framework
Green Power. linked to the RPO, which was introduced
India's first ever wind power auction, for inter-state purchase and sale of renew-
held this February, saw a record low tariff However, there might be some bumps ables-based power, has not been a great
of INR 3.46 (USD 0.05) per kWh, a signifi- in the immediate short term as the market success. This is largely due to the non-com-
cant fall compared to previous rates of INR transitions from the regime of feed-in tar- pliance and weak enforcement of the RPO
4-6. India continued to be the second- iff to a system of auctions where the lowest by the states and market regulators,
largest wind market in Asia, offering ample bidder wins, some industry leaders said. IWTMA said in its latest outlook.
prospects for both international and Feed-in tariffs typically mean long-term
domestic players, the GWEC report said. contracts and guaranteed pricing tied to (Source: indiaclimatedialogue.net)
costs of production for renewable energy
"The Indian wind market is now fully producers that the government offers to
mature. We will reach 175GW renewable cover risks and encourage investment.
capacity by 2022, out of which 60GW will

May 2017 11 Environment & people

By Janaki Lenin to five days later, white caterpillars hatch amazing ability of these little worms to
and devour wax, bee grub, pollen and bees' digest plastic, potentially a game changer
In 12 hours, 100 wax moth cater- faeces. If not contained, they can destroy in biodegrading this indestructible sub-
pillars had reduced a mass of hives. stance.
plastic by 92 milligrams, the
fastest plastic degradation After cleaning the panels, Bertocchini The global production of plastic topped
process known so far. threw the caterpillars into a shopping bag 300 million tonnes in 2015. Of these, the
and sealed it. When she returned to the packaging industry uses nearly 80 million
Federica Bertocchini, a molecular biol- room a few hours later, she found the lar- tonnes of polyethylene, the most common
ogist from the University of vae everywhere. She examined the bag and plastic. By 2018, production is expected to
Cantabria, Spain, tends bees in her found it riddled with holes. Polyethylene touch 100 million tonnes. Each year, we
spare time. Several months ago, when she bags such as the one she used are one of the use five trillion polyethylene shopping
took her honeycomb panels out of storage, toughest plastics - and yet the caterpillars bags, and we discard most of them after
they were infested with the caterpillars of had eaten their way out of it. But unlike the use. The rate at which they degrade can't
the honeycomb wax moth (Galleria mel- average beekeeper, she wasn't irritated keep up with our rate of usage. Instead,
lonella), a common parasite of beehives. with the many worms crawling all over the they break into smaller and smaller frag-
room. ments but don't decay.
Brownish-grey wax moths inveigle
their way into beehives and lay up to 600 "My reaction was of happiness," Low-density polyethylene takes at least
round pinkish eggs in batches. About three Bertocchini told The Wire. "It was very 100 years to degrade and the toughest may
exciting." take 400 years. Plastics overflow from
landfills, clog our rivers and swirl in great
By chance she had stumbled upon the

Environment & people 12 May 2017

garbage patches in the oceans. Many find said in a press release. dumps may hammer an already belea-
their way into the guts of wild animals - To rule out the possibility of the cater- guered honey industry. The team plans to
whales, turtles, elephants are just a few of find a biotechnological way to solve the
the many species that die from it. pillars' jaws mechanically abrading the enormous intractable problem of plastic
Scientists around the world are working to plastic, the researchers squashed the waste.
find ways to degrade plastic. And the wax worms and smeared the goo on a polyethyl-
moth caterpillars may just be the most ene sheet. In 14 hours, by just being in "In case the enzymes involved in poly-
promising so far. physical contact, 13% of the plastic had ethylene degradation can be characterised
corroded - that's 0.23 micrograms per and further developed, Bertocchini's report
"When I saw [the moth-eaten plastic square centimetre per hour. could make an important contribution
bag], it clicked right away," says towards this goal," says Zimmermann.
Bertocchini. "We immediately decided to On conducting a spectroscopic analysis,
pursue the research." the team identified the residue of ethylene Bertocchini normally studies the
glycol not only on the treated bag but also embryonic development of animals, but
In the lab, Bertocchini and her col- around the edges of holes eaten by the lar- she wasn't daunted by taking on a research
leagues Paolo Bombelli and Christopher vae. The larvae seem to break polyethylene project so far outside her regular field of
Howe, of the University of Cambridge, UK, down into ethylene glycol. work. "Although Paolo and Chris follow dif-
observed what 100 wax moth larvae could ferent lines of investigation, we had been
do to a typical shopping bag. In 40 minutes, "The caterpillar produces something talking about this issue of plastic degrada-
the caterpillars chewed holes through it at that breaks the chemical bond, perhaps in tion for quite some time," she says. A big-
the rate of two holes per worm an hour. In its salivary glands or a symbiotic bacteria
12 hours, they had reduced the mass of in its gut," said ger challenge was financing the research.
plastic by 92 milligrams, the fastest plastic Bombelli. "The next The wax moths already hold one record
degradation process known so far. steps for us will be
to try and identify for awesomeness. They can hear ultrasonic
"There are few previous reports about the molecular frequencies of up to 300 kHz, the most sen-
biodegradation of polyethylene," Wolfgang processes in this sitive in the animal kingdom.
Zimmermann, a biochemist at Leipzig reaction and see if
University, Germany, told The Wire. we can isolate the Even as beekeepers try to find ways to
enzyme responsi- avoid falling victim to wax moths, it could
Most research on biological forms of ble." be truly transformative if the insects' abili-
degradation focus on bacteria like Nocardia ty to digest plastic and transform it in a
asteroides and fungi such as Penicillium Although the form harmless to the environment
simplicissimum. Last year, Japanese bio- researchers don't becomes practical.
chemists isolated a bacteria called Ideonella know what sub-
sakaiensis outside a plastic recycling plant. stance produced by (Source: thewire.in)
It produces two enzymes - PETase and the caterpillars
MHETase - to break polyethylene tereph- reacted with poly-
thalate (commonly known by its abbrevia- ethylene, they sus-
tion PET) into terephthalic acid and ethyl- pect the process of
ene glycol. But they were much slower than digesting beeswax
the wax moth caterpillars, digesting only and polyethylene
0.13 milligrams a day, and PET is a simpler may be similar.
plastic and easier to disintegrate than poly- However, the wax
ethylene. moths aren't going
to be freeing the
The caterpillars of wax moths aren't world from its enor-
unique in eating plastic. The larvae of mous plastic problem anytime soon.
Indian mealmoth (Plodia interpunctella)
also chomp it up. Chinese researchers iso- "It is not clear how the degradation of
lated bacterial strains from its gut. the polyethylene occurred," says
However, over a four-week incubation peri- Zimmermann. "It is likely that enzymes
od, these bacteria succeeded in making pits from the gut microflora of the larvae were
and cavities of 0.3 to 0.4 micrometers in responsible for the observed effects, but
depth, too slow to be of practical use. this has not been shown. The biochemical
characterisation of the treated polyethyl-
Plastic is obviously not the wax moth ene and the breakdown products is only
caterpillars' normal diet. But they chewed preliminary and not complete."
through it with as much élan as when they
bite into beeswax. "The next step is to detect, isolate, and
produce this enzyme in vitro on an indus-
"Wax is a polymer, a sort of 'natural trial scale," explains Bertocchini.
plastic', and has a chemical structure not Unleashing a known beehive pest on waste
dissimilar to polyethylene," Bertocchini

May 2017 13 Environment & people

By Nidhi Jamwal

As mining makes a comeback

in Goa, people's protests

against environmental pollution

and destruction of livelihoods

have resurfaced in the state.

It's just been a couple of months since
mining recommenced in Sonshi, in the
Sattari taluka of Goa, but protests by
villagers and their subsequent arrest have
already made it to the headlines.

On April 11, the Gowda adivasi com-
munity in the taluka took to the road to
protest against pollution due to the non-
stop movement of trucks loaded with iron
ore in their area. They reinforced their past
demands for clean drinking water, employ-
ment and health facilities. Villagers
obstructed trucks and 45 of them - 23
women - were later arrested.

Although bail has been granted, the
arrested villagers have still not been freed.
"They are lodged in jail because of a hefty
surety amount of Rs 10,000 per arrested
villager, which comes to a total of Rs 4.5
lakh," said advocate Raviraj Chodankar.

Meanwhile, the arrested villagers have
refused bail, claiming that their demand
for clean air and water was not a crime to
have been arrested for in the first place.
"Except dried up water bodies and tonnes
of dust, there is nothing left in Sonshi for
villagers to return to," said Ravindra Velip,
a young adivasi activist and the panch
(head) of Caurem village. He was beaten up
in April 2016 for protesting against the
mining. He visited Sonshi on April 17 this
year to get firsthand information on the
goings-on.

Mining in Goa has been associated
with illegalities, environmental pollution
and a threat to the health of local commu-
nities. It has destroyed local water bodies
and dried up rivulets. It has rendered
waste large swathes of fertile land due to
the improper disposal of waste. The result-
ant dust pollution due to mining is also a

Environment & people 14 May 2017

major problem. Yet the complaints of local action was forthcoming. ing between the representatives of Sonshi
villagers are often interpreted as being A month later, in March, over 100 peo- and the mining company, the latter refused
'misguided and a form of 'emotional black- to pay a remuneration of Rs 225 per day to
mail'. ple from Sonshi were taken into preventive women sweepers because officials felt at
custody as they prepared to block trucks their work was "not satisfactory."
Mahadev J. Araundekar, the deputy col- carrying iron ore for e-auctioning. This
lector of Bicholim and under whose juris- year again, on January 27, villagers tried to Shut and open case
diction the case falls, said that Sonshi's block the trucks again. In September 2012, all mining opera-
people were arrested to maintain law and tions had been suspended in Goa because
order. "The mines at Sonshi have been opera- of large-scale corruption and a general mis-
tional since 1999, but a spurt came after management of mines. A year earlier, a
"In October 2012 all mining activities 2007," explains Velip. "Since then the situ- public accounts committee (PAC) appoint-
were banned in Goa by the apex court lead- ation has gone from bad to worse. For two, ed by the state had found nearly half the
ing to a financial crunch in the state," he three years there was a respite when min- active iron ore mines in Goa to have been
told The Wire. "It is only in the last one ing was banned but now it is back to hell for illegal, causing the state exchequer a loss of
year that mining has restarted after the the local communities."
court lifted its ban. The mining companies at least Rs 3,000 crore since 2005.
had required permissions to mine and Loss of livelihoods Even more startling revelations
transport the ore. But Sonshi villagers were Environmentalists also claim that min-
obstructing truck movement" - hence they ing has diminished the potential for agri- emerged in the September 2012 report of
were arrested, according to him. culture and horticulture in the area. the Shah Commission. It pegged the Goa
"Traditionally, the adivasis of Sonshi had mining scam at a stunning Rs 35,000 crore.
However, he also suggested that a high- cultivated paddy and horticultural crops Within three days, the state government
er authority, such as a high court or the such as areca nut, coconut and spices," passed an order suspending all mining
chief minister, should intervene and Rajendra P. Kerkar, a Goan conservationist, operations in the state with immediate
resolve the matter by issuing suitable direc- recalled. "There was a time when Sonshi vil- effect. The environment ministry at the
tions to meet the villagers' demands. lagers were the most famous horticultural- Centre also revoked the clearances of all
ists of Goa." 139 working mines in the state.
All said, the situation remains tense in But with mining, agricultural lands
the area, with 45 adivasi still lodged in jail. have turned barren and several villagers The next month, the Supreme Court
have turned daily-wage labourers. "It is a suspended all mining activities and banned
Mining in Sonshi shame that the state's best horticulturists the trading and transportation of iron ore
Sonshi is an adivasi hamlet of Honda are holding protests to demand menial jobs in Goa. All five mines around Sonshi had
village in Sattari. It is inhabited by 60 fam- like cleaning of roads," Kerkar said. been closed.
ilies, and surrounded by six iron ore mines Acknowledging the crisis in Sonshi,
operated by Vedanta Ltd. and Fomento. Araundekar said, "If mining companies But in April 2014, the top court lifted
"At least 1,182 trucks have been hired offer regular jobs to the villagers they will the ban and prescribed fresh clearances and
by the five mine operators to transport stop protesting." approvals for all mines from the environ-
iron ore," according to Chodankar. "Each According to a recent report, in a meet- ment ministry and the respective state
truck makes six, seven trips daily. The thick agencies. The court also placed an annual
cloud of dust never settles at Sonshi, lead- cap of 20 million tonnes (mt) of iron ore
ing to high air and noise pollution. Velip
claimed that a truck loaded with 10 tonnes
of iron ore passes through Sonshi hamlet
every three seconds.
Sonshi gets all of its water in tankers
from one of the mine's owners, and they
claim the mining activities have dirtied the
water. "For the last few years the local peo-
ple have been demanding clean tap drink-
ing water and a free health facility in the
village. But both the government and the
mining companies have paid no heed,"
Chodankar complained.
This isn't the first protest by Sonshi's
residents. In February 2016, they had
appealed to the mining companies
demanding the same things they are now:
continuous supply of drinking water,
employment, playground facilities for their
children, a monthly compensation, clean
gutters and trenches, street-lights, etc. No

May 20171 15 Environment & people

extraction in Goa. It is pertinent that, Meera Gopal going to inherit the earth with all the
between 1971 and 2011, the annual iron ore environmental problems left by our gen-
exports from Goa had increased from 10 mt A nine-year-old girl, Ridhima eration.
to 45 mt.
Pandey from the Himalayan Ridhima approached the tribunal
In spite of repeated efforts, Glenn because history has shown that commit-
Kalavampara, the secretary of the Goa state of Uttarakhand, has filed ments made under international agree-
Mineral Ore Exporters' Association, was not ments rarely translate into action at the
available for comment. On April 18, Vedanta a petition against the Indian ground level or make a difference for
had issued a statement: "It is not a standalone average citizens battling climate change.
issue of Vedanta and concerns all mining fra- government, seeking action to
ternity working in the area. As a responsible Uttarakhand has been devastated in
and sustainable miner, we will work along save the planet for future gen- the past three years by heavy rains, flash
with the government and stakeholders at floods and frequent landslides, linked to
large towards a proactive approach to resolve erations climate change, and estimated to have
the crisis at the earliest. However, we would killed thousands of people. Ridhima
like to state that the root cause of the issue As US President Donald Trump inherited her passion for climate change
was business/economic related" (sic). As a scrapped his predecessor Barack campaigning from her father, Dinesh
temporary move, the company has decided to Obama's Clean Power Plan in an Pandey, who has been working for 16
divert its trucks, bypassing the residential attempt to turn back the clock on the years for an environmental NGO in
area of Sonshi. global fight against climate change, a Uttarakhand.
nine-year-old girl in India has
Waste woes for villagers approached the National Green The petition
And while Sonshi continues to simmer, Tribunal, the country's environmental In her petition, Ridhima, who is rep-
villagers from other pollution-affected parts court, to hold the government to resented by advocates from Lawyers
of Goa have been coming forward to lodge account for its commitment under the Initiative for Forest and Environment
complaints against the illegal dumping of Paris climate agreement. (LIFE), argues the government needs to
waste from sponge iron plants. take urgent and effective, science-based
Barely three kilometres from Costi village Ridhima Pandey, hailing from the measures under the existing environ-
in Sanguem taluka are two sponge iron facto- Himalayan State of Uttarakhand in mental legal framework in India to
ries. They're situated within 100 metres of India, represents the generation that is
each other. Amar Naik, a youth leader from
Costi village, recently documented the illegal
practices adopted by these factories to rid
their waste.
"Both factories regularly dump their
waste into a nearby stone quarry which is on
government land. They also offer money to
local people to accept their waste and dump it
on open private lands. This is not only caus-
ing land pollution but is a serious threat to
the local water bodies as well," he said. He has
filed complaints with both the deputy collec-
tor and the mamlatdar (head of the taluka's
revenue office) of Sanguem. So far, no action
has been taken.
India's environment ministry places
sponge iron plants in the 'red category' of gen-
erators of heavy pollution. The plants' solid
waste consists of char, dust, kiln accretion,
electrostatic precipitator wastes and gas-
cleaning plant sludge.
According to the Centre for Science and
Environment, New Delhi, it is a common
practice for the plants to dump their char
somewhere within their premises or on near-
by agricultural fields.

(Source: thewire.in)

Environment & people 16 May 2017

reduce and minimise the adverse impacts "carbon budget", for the total amount of shortages caused by crop failure, ocean
of climate change in the country. The tri- greenhouse gas (mainly carbon dioxide) acidification, water and soil salinization,
bunal has admitted the petition and has emissions that can be released until 2050 and species extinction. A 2015 UNICEF
directed the government to respond by India, in keeping with the global report estimated over half a billion chil-
within two weeks. That leaves Ridhima responsibility of limiting the long-term dren live in extremely high flood occur-
hopeful of a better India. average global temperature increase to rence zones, whereas nearly 160 million
no more than 2°C. India currently has a live in high or extremely high drought
The petition highlights the govern- commitment to reduce the intensity of severity zones.
ment's failure to act on climate change, its emissions by 30-35% by 2030, com-
despite introducing many policies on pared to 2005. There is hope
paper. Ridhima argues that the govern- This petition follows a similar case
ment can mitigate the adverse impacts of Why are children coming forward?
climate change if it takes steps within the It is well documented that children brought by a seven year old girl last year
existing framework of environmental are the most vulnerable and worst affect- against the Pakistan government for not
protection laws. ed due to adverse impacts of climate taking sufficient action on climate
change across the globe. Unfortunately, change. It is a good sign that children like
But the problem is in the implemen- owing to their "minor" status, they are Ridhima are coming forward to bring
tation. To substantiate, the petition not involved in decision making process- about such positive change.
underscores the lacunae in the process of es. Antony Lake, UNICEF Executive
environmental impact assessment under Director, pointed out, "As temperatures In his book The Great Derangement:
the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, Climate Change and the Unthinkable,
and the diversion of forest land despite increase, together with water scarcity
the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980. The and air pollution, children will feel the Amitav Ghosh writes that a "lack of tran-
petition argues that various projects deadliest impact of water-borne diseases sitive connection between political mobi-
seeking environmental or forest clear- and dangerous respiratory conditions. As lization, on the one hand, and global
ance should also be appraised for climate more extreme weather events expand the warming, on the other, is nowhere more
change impacts and whether they are in number of emergencies and humanitari- evident than in the countries of South
line with commitments made to the UN an crises, children will pay the highest Asia, all of which are extraordinarily vul-
Framework Convention on Climate price. As the world experiences a steady nerable to climate change." He laments
Change under India's nationally deter- rise in climate-driven migration, chil- that "climate change has not resulted in
mined contributions to combat climate dren's lives and futures will be the most an outpouring of passion in the country,
change. It promises a "low carbon emis- disrupted." despite the fact that India has innumer-
sion pathway" for India. able environmental organisations and
Children are particularly susceptible grassroots movements." Hopefully,
Every year more than 50,000 to injury and death as a result of extreme Ridhima will be able to prove Amitav
hectares of natural forests are diverted heat, drought, floods and other disasters Ghosh wrong.
by the Government of India and thou- caused by climate change. They are also
sands of projects are granted environ- at an increased risk from food and water (Source: indiaclimatedialogue.net)
mental clearance. The impact of the mas-
sive diversion of forest land on aggravat-
ing climate change has never been con-
sidered. The petition further points out
that the government committees
appraising projects have not factored cli-
mate change impacts and mitigation into
their decisions.

Through this ambitious petition,
Ridhima asks the NGT to direct the gov-
ernment and its agencies to assess cli-
mate related issues while appraising proj-
ects for grant of environmental/ forest
clearances. They should also check proj-
ects satisfy compensatory afforestation
conditions before granting permissions
for fresh diversion of forests, keeping in
view the INDC commitment of increas-
ing carbon sinks in the country.

Ridhima has also asked the govern-
ment to prepare quantifiable targets, or a

May 2017 17 Environment & people



YOGA REDUCES STRESS YOGA IS A CONSTANT
Do you struggle with mood swings? The Change is the only constant in life and human life

answer is yes, for most people. Mood swings are is all about changes. When we experience a turning
most commonly caused by stress. We all know point in our personal life, people often turn their
that stress can cause several health issues, but back on us. However, yoga is the gift that keeps giv-
what we don’t know is how deeply stress it can ing. Regular yoga practice helps us deal with change
affect our mood. Yoga has the power to release positively. If you are in the midst of a major change
endorphins, which are “feel good” chemicals, in in your life, such as career change, moving to a new
the brain. Several studies have also hinted that city, or going through the ordeal of a divorce, or
yoga may improve your mood and battle stress in mourning a loss of a loved one, then practicing yoga
the long term as well. With the help of regular can help you achieve inner peace, stability and tran-
yoga practice and meditation, you can not only quility.
experience improved health and reduction of
stress, but your mood swings will also visibly
diminish.

YOGA PROMOTES FITNESS
Being fit and healthy is a priority for every-

one. However, fitness is not limited to the body
only. The true definition of health is when you are
not just physically fit but also mentally and emo-
tionally well balanced. Yoga is one of the best ways
to improve your overall condition. If you already
work out every day, incorporating a day or two of
yoga into your plan can be more beneficial for
your overall fitness.

YOGA BENEFITS WITH ANXIETY AND DEPRES- YOGA ENSURES BETTER FLEXIBILITY AND POSTURE
SION A lot of people complain about having a bad pos-

Today, everyone is dealing with some kind ture, mostly because of bad sitting habits. It is the era
of trauma; be it depression, anxiety, loss, phys- of working at tables, hunched over laptops. Yoga is
ical pain etc. Anxiety and depression can pretty helpful in developing straight postures.
become a serious threat, if not nipped in the Regular yoga practice stretches and tones body mus-
bud. The good news is, daily yoga practice can cles, increases flexibility and also helps keep bones
be very effective for improving overall mental strong. People with unattractive postures can
well-being. It has been observed that regular improve them by practicing yoga poses that ease
sessions of yoga leave you feeling positive, calm tense muscles in the shoulders and upper back areas.
and at peace. Daily yoga practice can strengthen these muscles and
provide a confident (and graceful) posture.
According to an article published by the
renowned Harvard University, yoga helps a lot
in regulating a person’s stress response. It also
helps you save those extra bucks you spend on
expensive medicines that are normally pre-
scribed to resolve anxiety and depression
issues. Best of all, yoga has no side effects!

May 2017 19 Environment & people

Opportunity to Build traditions. Residents thought tourism is
Conservation Support: Local offsetting losses in Annapurna, Chitwan
People’s Perceptions of Parks in and Ranthambore, but increased the cost
India and Nepal of living around Indian parks.

by Krithi K. Karanth park management negatively. Locals around parks in Nepal were
Particularly vulnerable people appear much more favorable towards tourism
Protected areas and parks in South growth and felt that tourism strengthened
Asia are tasked with protecting bio- to be small landholders; households that cultural traditions. Residents in
logical diversity and supporting local rely heavily on park resources or are less Annapurna, Chitwan and Ranthambore,
livelihood needs, particularly so in human- educated, and experience severe losses to felt that tourism was offsetting losses.
dominated landscapes of India and Nepal. wildlife. Residents around all Indian parks felt that
Krithi K. Karanth and Sanjay Nepal exam- tourism was increasing cost of living.
ine attitudes and perceptions of local resi- Overall positive attitudes of local peo-
dents living around five well known parks ple toward parks present a huge opportuni- Many people (81%) were dependent on
in South Asia, namely Annapurna, ty to build local support for conservation. resources from the park (including grazing,
Chitwan, Ranthambore, Kanha and plant parts and non-timber forest prod-
Nagarahole. These are the highlights of Study sites ucts) but less inclined to report hunting
their study from a paper published in the Three parks were selected in India — and fishing practices.
journal Environmental Management.
Nagarahole, Kanha and Ranthambore and Majority (90%) experienced conflicts
Surveys and interviews with 777 local two in Nepal — Chitwan and Annapurna. with wildlife, particularly crop and live-
residents were conducted in and around stock loss. Unfortunately, most people
these five parks Methods (91%) were unaware of compensation
In 2004 and 2009, interviews were con- schemes and many reported not receiving
Annual wildlife tourism is growing rap- compensation for losses from authorities.
idly in these parks, but local people in ducted with 777 people living around these
Nepal have more favorable attitudes com- parks in Nepal and India respectively. Injury and death to humans was
pared to people in India. reported to be very low (<1%).
The Results
Most (81%) of people viewed the parks Local residents derived their income Residents viewed park authorities and
favorably. management efforts negatively. Reasons
mainly from agriculture (66% in India and were restrictions placed on park entry,
Benefits to locals from parks include 46% in Nepal), with most of them (80%) resource collection and grazing, and lack of
access to fuel wood, fodder and other park owning their land. concern shown to local residents.
resources and costs to local people include Confrontations with authorities were sig-
crop and livestock losses to wildlife. Locals around Nepal parks were much nificant (>50%) in Ranthambore and
more favorable towards tourism growth Kanha.
Many (69%) of the people perceived and felt that tourism strengthened cultural
Conservation in these human-domi-
nated landscapes requires the support of
local people. The overall positive attitudes
towards parks and wildlife present a huge
opportunity to engage and increase local

(Cont... page no. 25)

Environment & people 20 May 2017

Eco Tourism Mountain Expeditions

Mountaineering Location : Himachal, mountains here is like climbing up the heav- need permits to undertake mountain climb-
Garhwal, Ladakh and Kumaon. en. The high peaks here will not only test ing activity in India. It is a punishable
your stamina but technical skills as well. offense to climb a mountain without prior
Best Time : Summer months from May Ladakh, here, is the most enthralling moun- permission. You need to register yourself
to Mid-October are best time to suitable to taineering destination with a number of with the regular authorities to avoid legal
climb mountains at high altitudes. Rainy high peaks testing mountaineers. hassles. Send your application with all doc-
months of July is not advisable for moun- uments at least three months in advance to
tain climbing as there landslides during Garhwal Indian Mountaineering Foundation. You
rains are common. Garhwal draws an large number of have to specifically inform about the desti-
nation, path, group, group leader, number
Some Tips : Examine your physical and trekkers in India. Either love for nature or of days and past experience in mountain
mental health before taking an moun- passion for adventure; Garhwal is a perfect climbing.
taineering expedition. Body resistance mountaineering spot. The snow covered
varies from person to person. Exercising is mountain peaks of Nanda Devi, Kedarnath, As you reach India, you may inquire
an asset. It can help you build stamina. And Kamet, Bandarpoonch, and other peaks ris- from the from police or army headquarter
always go with experienced mountaineers.
Mountaineering in India ing 1000 Mts. into the blue distant sky of about the expedition. They can also help
the challenges to the mountaineers to sur- you hire porters and liaison officer to assist
"Nine planets round the sun, only one mount and prevail over. you throughout your trip. You are expected
does the sun embrace. Upon this watered to ensure yourself to cover for accident risks
one, so much we take for granted; So let us Some Precautions for Mountaineers and ground/helicopter search and rescue.
sleep outside tonight, lay down in our Mountaineering can be risky if you miss All mountaineers are expected to have X
nature's arms, for here we can rest safely. Mountaineering Visa endorsed on their visa
One sweet world around a star is spinning - on even a very minute precaution. You must by Indian Embassy.
One sweet world - And in her breath we will consult a doctor to determine your physical For Indian Nationals
be swimming, and here we will rest in stamina and body resistance. All medicines
peace." that you mayu require while climbing Applications for mountaineering expe-
should always be there with you. dition should be sent to state government
It costs nothing than a fortune to be as Dehydration is a common problem so you or military base, 6 months in advance.
close to our mother nature. Life seems must not forget to carry a bottle of water Trekking in restricted areas of Jammu and
dwindling in front of vast canvas that with you. Moving in groups is always advis- Kashmir should be undertaken only after a
appends all the mysterious wonders of the able as you can be in touch with your clearance from military. Medical examina-
world. There is so much to see while the friends, if need some help. Carraying your tion is a must. Two weeks prior to the expe-
time we have is so little. So, if you are pen- identity card with yourself can really help. dition, you must inform the commissioner
chant about this small meeting with moth- You may leave some of your basic informa- of police or defense base of a particular
er nature, brace yourself for an unforget- tion with the organizers as well. place; about your trip. If any photographs
table journey of the majestic mountains of are taken, they must be first cleared from
India. Permits and Licenses military. Insurance against all risks is neces-
For Foreign Nationals sary with a credit letter for 35,000 and
Mountaineering Destinations If you are a foreign national, you may above if a helicopter search is required.
Himachal Pradesh
The foothills of Himalayas are the core May 2017 21 Environment & people

of mountaineering activities in India. The
area around Manali, Beas Kund and
Hunuman Tibba are some of the popular
mountaineering destinations in Himachal
Pradesh. If you are a beginner then Tibba is
a perfect mountaineering spot. The
Chandra Bhaga ranges, Pir Panjal and
Dhaulandhar ranges are the focal points of
such an adventurous expedition.
Jammu and Kashmir

Num, Kun and Zanskar ranges are
choicest summits that are loved moun-
taineers. The snow covered mountains not
only offer great adventure but bewitch
mountaineers with the variegated sur-
roundings that adorn Kashmir. Climbing a

By Nagraj Adve

In a mental landscape increasingly dominated by the
ephemeral nature of 'Breaking News', Larsen C exemplifies
a global warming trait difficult to get our heads around.

Half a planet away from the by several kilometres at a time.
immediacy of politics that The mammoth iceberg-to-be -
dominates our headlines,
there's a crisis unfolding that can let's call it 'Goa Plus' - is currently
dog us for centuries. In West attached to Larsen C by 20 kilome-
Antarctica, a huge ice shelf called tres of ice. It could break off entire-
Larsen C has developed a rift 175 ly anytime in the next few months,
kilometres long and half-a-kilome- weakening the ice shelf further.
tre wide. A chunk of the shelf is This happened to its now-extinct
poised to break off soon. When that cousin Larsen B. In 1995, a large
happens, the 'chunk' will be an ice- chunk of Larsen B broke off and B
berg over 5,000 sq. km across and itself disintegrated spectacularly
350m high - more than four times over a 35-day period in 2002.
the height of Delhi's Qutub Minar
and over an area one-and-a-half Peer-reviewed research has yet
times the size of Goa. And we need to conclusively demonstrate that
to pay more attention because it global warming is responsible for
could potentially gravely impact the accelerating rift in Larsen C,
India's people in the near and long although background warming con-
term. ditions have made that likely.
Temperatures in the Antarctic
Ice shelves are extensions of ice Peninsula, where Larsen C is locat-
sheets, are fed by their glaciers and ed, have been "rising at four to six
jut hundreds of kilometres out to times the global average," according
sea. Sprawled over 48,600 sq. km, to the Intergovernmental Panel on
Larsen C is a little larger than Climate Change's Fifth Assessment
Haryana. It is Antarctica's fourth- Report (5AR). Global warming also
largest ice shelf and an extension of traps warmer subsurface ocean
the gigantic West Antarctic Ice waters, because of which "climate
Sheet (WAIS). The rift in Larsen C change has caused a thinning of the
has been growing, in recent weeks [Larsen C] ice shelf," the team
studying it said last month.

Environment & people 22 May 2017

But Larsen C's disintegration will not level rise of 10 cm. around agricultural lands and water
occur next week. In a mental landscape And all this is part of an accelerating sources that had turned saline, and farmers
increasingly dominated by mobile phones, being forced to migrate in the thousands.
tweets and the ephemeral nature of rise that may have already begun. Per the
'Breaking News', what's happening to IPCC, the average rate of ice loss from Erosion and sea ingress are also hap-
Larsen C illustrates a key trait about global Antarctica has increased from 30 billion pening on the coasts of Gujarat, Tamil
warming that will take some effort to get tonnes a year over 1992-2001 to 147 bil- Nadu and elsewhere. But an accelerating
our heads around. Many of its slower lion tonnes a year over 2002-2011. sea level rise will means that what is hap-
effects unfold over long periods. After the Twentieth century sea level rise was linear, pening in Sunderbans today will occur all
chunk broke off Larsen B in 1995, it kept increasing in fixed steps, because its chief along India's 7,500-km coastline tomorrow
getting smaller eventually disintegrating sources were ocean expansion due to - with the potential to devastate coastal
only seven years later. warmer waters and glacial melting. It will communities. The lives of millions of peo-
happen at an exponentially growing rate ple will surely get affected by events that
Adrian Luckman, a professor of glaciol- this century because the main source will seem very distant.
ogy at the Swansea University, Wales, and be the melting of, and faster ice flows from,
project leader of the group studying Larsen the gigantic ice sheets on Greenland and Larsen B disintegrated in 2002. A 570-
C, wrote this author an email recently: "If Antarctica. sq.-km chunk of the Wilkins ice shelf broke
the shelf continues to erode slowly after off in 2008. The 5,000-sq.-km 'Goa Plus'
this calving event - as was the case with In a paper published last March, the will break off Larsen C in 2017. These are
Larsen B - then it will be years until the renowned climate scientist James Hansen early warning signs to which we should pay
remaining shelf is eroded far enough for a and others foresee a "non-linearly growing heed. These dramatic events provide much
complete destabilisation." sea level rise, reaching several metres over food for thought. They are for all practical
a timescale of 50-150 years." purposes irreversible, and no one expects
Accelerating sea level rise Larsen B to re-form in the foreseeable
The vast WAIS, Klaus Dodds's The Implications for India future and hold its glaciers in check once
Antarctic informs us, is 'marine-based': its Ten centimetres of average sea level again.
base is below sea level. "Its edges transform
into floating ice shelves." So, Larsen C's col- rise from the collapse of Larsen C may not We also need to internalise the long-
lapse will not by itself contribute to sea seem like much until we put that figure in term nature of the changes that are being
level rise as it is already floating in water. perspective. It's a little over half of all the wrought, such as ice sheet destabilisation
But the glaciers that feed into Larsen C can sea level rise the world has already experi- in Antarctica and elsewhere. Individually
because, when an ice shelf gives way, these enced since 1901. This should deeply con- and collectively, humans have become used
glaciers start to flow much faster into the cern us. Sea level rise in the Sunderbans is to providing for our old age and thinking
sea. significantly higher than the global average about the wellbeing of our next generation
"The collapse of Larsen B, which is thanks to its topography and that its land - but not beyond. Now, we need to recon-
unprecedented in the last 10,000 years, has is subsiding. When a team this author was sider how we think about global warming
resulted in a speeding up of the tributary part of visited some islands in the and its impact, which will continue to
glaciers by 300 to 800%," says the 5AR. Sunderbans a couple years ago, we spoke to haunt many generations in India and
That's not good news. Larsen C is five numerous people whose earliest homes had around the world for centuries to come.
times as large as Larsen B was. The glaciers since been swallowed under water. It was
it holds back contain vastly more ice and, as easy to meet people who had moved three (Source: thewire.in)
has been reported, could contribute a sea- or four times due to advancing erosion.
There were also fragmented families, living

By Sandhya Sekar

Urumin has been
found to be effective
against influenza
strains that have
developed resistance
to commonly used
drugs.

Aprotein found on the beautifully of flux the virus is in. All living organisms produce an array of
coloured skin of a frog from the The influenza virus is a tiny sphere, proteins to defend themselves against
Western Ghats has the potential to microbes. The first line against an invading
be a weapon against the influenza virus, a about 100 nanometers in diameter. Like all microbe is the skin. Skin cells produce
recent study has found. The 'weapon' pro- viruses, it comes alive only when in contact short, positively charged proteins called
tein has been named 'urumin' after urumi, with a living being. On its surface are about host defence peptides (HDPs) that are nat-
a sword with a flexible, whip-like blade 500 spike-like projections called haemag- ural antibiotics. Once the HDP encounters
used in Kalaripayattu, a martial arts form glutinins. They allow the virus to stick to a microbial cell, it curls up into a comfort-
native to Kerala. host cells, for example in the respiratory able position and does its business. It can
tract. Once inside a host cell, the virus poke holes in the microbe and make it pop,
The frog is the widespread fungoid frog replicates. Other mushroom-shaped interfere with the regular functions of the
(Hydrophylax bahuvistara). It is about the spikes, called neuraminidase, help the microbe or act as a lightning rod recruiting
size of a tennis ball and has an orange back, progeny exit the cell and infect others. The
separated from a brown underbelly by a different names of various influenza the host's defence
thin streak of golden yellow. Spots adorn strains, like H5N1 and H1N1, have to do mechanism to fight
the frog all over. It hops about near water with the types of haemagglutinin and neu- away the intruding
bodies on the forest floor and often ven- raminidase. microbe.
tures near human habitation. When adult
males of this frog get together during the There are three types of influenza Research in the 1980s
breeding season, their loud singing chorus viruses: A, B and C. Influenza A is the most showed that amphibians (frogs,
pierces the twilight for about a kilometre severe, and responsible for all the influenza toads and salamanders) secrete
around. pandemics till date. The virus can cause ill- many unique HDPs to defend themselves
ness in humans as well as in other species against pathogens they encounter in their
It is from this frog that a team led by like birds and pigs. When inside non- natural habitats. Amphibian skin is more
Jacob Joshy of Emory University, Atlanta, human hosts, the virus mutates, and when than a slimy surface. It hosts a chemical
with collaborators from the Rajiv Gandhi it infects humans again, it can cause devas- arsenal shaped by millions of years of evo-
Centre for Biotechnology (RGCB), tating epidemics. The H5N1 bird flu, which lution. Further research showed that some
Thiruvananthapuram, isolated urumin. has been causing repeated epidemics amphibian HDPs are also active against
The protein has been shown to destroy around the world, is an infamous example. microbes that affect humans.
influenza A viruses in mice. Even in 2015, there was a bird flu scare in
southern Kerala and thousands of ducks Sanil George from RGCB has been
The arena had to be culled.
Influenza is an acute viral infection,
The fighters
highly contagious through airborne viral
particles. In temperate countries, influenza
strikes during winter. In the tropics, when
exactly the infection occurs is unclear. The
virus itself is constantly evolving. Its genet-
ic material, the ribonucleic acid (RNA),
mutates very easily. In fact, humans are
currently engaged in an arms race of sorts
with the virus. Every year, the WHO intro-
duces a new influenza vaccine - different
ones for the world's northern and southern
hemispheres, further testimony to the level

Environment & people 24 May 2017

studying HDPs from the frogs in his backyard, the lead author of the study, told The Wire. (page. 20 cont..)
which happens to be the foothills of the When mice infected with influenza were support. This will require
Western Ghats, one of the eight hottest biodi-
versity hotspots in the world. In a recent given a dose of urumin through their nasal pas- sustained efforts to expand
review, his team mentioned that HDPs had sages, the virus loads in the mice lungs tourism benefits to locals,
been sampled from about 60 Asian amphibian decreased dramatically. Even with a "sub-opti- improve compensation for
species. The Western Ghats alone has about mal" drug delivery, the HDP was effective. "We losses to wildlife, improve
160 amphibian species (and counting), of should deliver it systemically, and currently we relationships with park man-
which more than 130 are endemic: found only are figuring out how to do this efficiently," agers and create alternative
here, nowhere else in the world. George has Joshy said. livelihoods to decrease
only touched the tip of the proverbial iceberg. dependence on park
The paper states that most current influen- resources. Extending benefits
The widespread fungoid frog is one such za drugs target the neuraminidase stalks on to smaller landholders, highly
endemic species. George's team collected the the viral surface. This is a variable region; it can resource-dependent people,
secretions from about 15 individuals and change very quickly as the virus mutates. households subject to higher
released them back unharmed. Initial screen- Urumin, on the other hand, targets an area income losses due to human-
ing revealed that of the 32 HDPs from the that does not change: the 'stalk' of the hemag- wildlife conflicts, and less edu-
secretion, four were effective against the H1N1 glutinin. No other HDP discovered till now acts cated residents are particular-
influenza A virus. Of these, a 27-amino-acid- in this way. ly promising to balance costs
long peptide was least toxic to human cells: and losses from living in and
urumin. This makes urumin effective against around parks in India and
influenza strains that have developed resist- Nepal.
A definitive victory ance to commonly used drugs. This is of espe-
Further tests showed that urumin was able cial relevance because of the rise of drug-resist- Increasing awareness and sup-
ant influenza around the world. And given the port for parks among local peo-
to destroy all eight strains of the H1N1 virus. propensity of influenza to cause pandemics, ple
However, it was not so effective against the H3 battling a drug-resistant virus without the
type of influenza. This led the researchers to right drug can be a nightmare. Local people are often the
conclude that the virus was targeting some most neglected group when it
part of the haemagglutinin H1 on the virus. "This is an interesting study. For the future, comes increasing support for
it would be important to determine how long protecting and managing
"I do not know exactly how the peptide kills after infection the peptide is efficacious," said parks in South Asia. Their
the virus. We know that it binds to hemagglu- Raghavan Varadarajan, a molecular biophysi- daily interactions and strong
tinin but the events that happen next that cist at the Indian Institute of Science, ties to these parks provide a
leads to the destruction of the virus is an area Bengaluru. He was not involved in the study. huge advantage to building
of active research in my lab at this time," Jacob, long-term conservation
The study had picked urumin above other efforts. However, growing
HDPs because it was the least toxic to human negative perceptions about
red blood cells. However, "unknown toxicities the purpose of these parks,
are still an issue for these peptides, although and conflicts with park
some clarification of these toxicities should be authorities and private enter-
coming soon," Robert Hancock, a professor of prises are making it increas-
microbiology at the University of British ingly difficult to gain support
Columbia, told The Wire. He added that it for conservation initiatives.
would be a challenge to package the HDP well This is evidenced from the
enough so it isn't damaged by enzymes in the strong opposition to simple
host's body, before acknowledging a benefit: efforts to establish ecological-
"Cost of goods is an issue but given the lack of ly sensitive zones around
alternatives I see peptides as promising despite parks in India. There is an
this, especially in elderly individuals." urgent need to educate and
involve local residents living
What remains is to decipher the exact around our parks in managing
mechanism through which urumin acts, and these landscapes adjacent to
then to devise an effective way to deliver the these parks.
drug into an infected person. From a broader
perspective, delving into the mysteries of dif- (Source: conservationindia.org)
ferent life-forms in our forests, and conserving
our rich biodiversity, has just taken on another
hue.

(Source: thewire.in)

May 2017 25 Environment & people

Swati Bansal availability of life stages of Hilsa in the Mission Kakatiya is impressive: Centre
selected stretches. The 30-member central team
In a first-of-its-kind study to docu-
ment marine litter accumulating in Centre to revive 45-year-old North which had visited Telangana to study
the oceans and marine bodies on Koel river irrigation project Mission Kakatiya was highly
earth, Germany's Alfred Wegener impressed with the state's flagship
Institute created a world map called The Centre has decided to go ahead programme which is yielding good
Litter Base that has the coastal areas in with the remaining works of the 45- results. The team that visited the
Mumbai, Kerala and Andaman and year-old North Koel river irrigation Medak district to observe the imple-
Nicobar in India marked as the most project at an estimated cost of Rs mentation of the scheme had officials
polluted areas in the world. In 1,622 crore. Once completed, the proj- from Central Water Commission along
Mumbai, the study has been conduct- ect is going to provide irrigation facili- with irrigation officials from
ed on Juhu, Dadar, Aksa and Versova ties to over one lakh hectare of farm- Maharashtra, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh
beaches and it has been found that land in Daltonganj and Palamu region. and Uttar Pradesh. The team has been
plastic accumulation has drastically impressed by the state's efforts and
increased over the years in the four Ninety percent of the project was com- how the programme has been able to
beaches, with the highest quantity of pleted in 2007 but it was stopped due impact socioeconomic conditions of
microplastics found in Juhu. to pending clearances. To take care of the people, especially farmers.
the clearance and rehabilitation issues,
Government gears up for Hilsa conserva- the government has proposed to Agricultural assets to be geotagged
tion reduce the height of its main dam by The Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojna
26 meter. (RKVY) of the agriculture ministry and
For a better conservation and man- National Remote Sensing Centre
agement of the Hilsa fish, the National (NRSC) have joined hands to geotag
Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has agricultural assets of the country for
approved a budget of Rs 2.5 million for real-time monitoring and effective
conducting a study on the Hilsa fish in utilisation. As per the ministry, the
the Ganga river. The objective of the project is going to bring transparency
study is to assess the present catch of in governance, avoid duplication and
Hilsa in the Ganga, in the upstream help in preparing the contingency
and downstream of Farakka barrage, in plan. Along with the agriculture assets,
the feeder channel and in the naviga- the project will also include ponds,
tional channel. Apart from this, in crop area, warehouses and laboratories
order to establish the habitat of the for geotagging.
fish, the survey is going to assess the
(Source: indiawaterportal.org)

Environment & people 26 May 2017

Eco Fact: Eco IQ

27,000 trees are cut down each day so we 1. Which type of lighting saves the most energy?
can have Toilet Paper.
A. Halogen Bulb B. Incandescent Light Bulb
Aluminum can be recycled continuously, as in
forever. Recycling 1 aluminum can save C. CFL Bulb
enough energy to run our TVs for at least 3
hours. 80 trillion aluminum cans are used by 2. Which is more environment-friendly?
humans every year. A. Recyclable plastic bag B. Reusable Canvas bag
C. Both are equally environment-friendly
American companies alone use enough Paper
to encircle the Earth 3x! (It’s a good thing that 3. An electric device, when switched off but connected to the mains, still draws
businesses are moving towards going paper-
less) electricity?

We can save 75,000 trees if we recycled the A. True B. False
paper used on the daily run of the New York
Times alone. 4. Which uses the most amount of water?

When you throw plastic bags and other plas- A. Bath B. Shower
tic materials in the ocean, it kills as many as
1 million sea creatures annually. C. Bathing from a bucket

A glass bottle made in our time will take more 5. At a traffic light, you should:
than 4,000 years to decompose. A. Turn off the engine B. Keep the engine in idle
C. Doesn't matter
Only 1% of our planet’s water supply can be
used. 97% is ocean water and 2% is frozen 6. Recharging a single-use battery is a good way to save the environment:
solid in the Arctic, for now.
A. True B. False
Our planet gains inhabitants numbering to 77
million people a year. 7. Which harms the environment the least?

An estimated 50,000 species inhabiting our A. Petrol cars B. Diesel cars
tropical forests become extinct annually.
That’s an average of 137 species a day.

Rainforests are cut down at a rate of 100
acres per minute.

The world’s oldest trees are more than 4,600
years old.

Landfills are composed of 35% packaging
materials.

May 2017 27 Environment & people

Astepwell in Maharashtra stands for lation depended on rains and often faced They served many purposes depending on
the spectacular architecture of a time water scarcity or droughts. the location. For example, baolis within vil-
when the importance of water con- lages were mainly used for procuring water
servation was acknowledged and water was Stepwells are a peculiarity of the states and for social gatherings while baolis locat-
stored and used with ingenuity. of western India, especially the arid states ed on trade routes often served as resting
of Gujarat and Rajasthan. These deep places. Stepwells used exclusively for agri-
The annual droughts in Maharashtra wells, built by the rulers of those times for culture had drainage systems that chan-
have put tremendous pressure on the avail- civic, strategic or philanthropic reasons, nelled water into the fields.
able water resources in the state. While the have steps that reach the water level which
government has not been able to provide make it easier for the people to access Many of these structures, however, are
adequate, potable water to people in both water and to maintain them. in a dilapidated state now, either ignored
rural and urban areas, the need to explore by communities and turned into garbage
other decentralised and localised means of The basic idea behind constructing dumps or exploited for their stones or just
harnessing and conserving water has only stepwells, locally referred to as vav, vavadi, left around to decay. Current systems of
got more crucial with time. bawdi, bawri, baoli, and bavadi in Gujarat water distribution like taps and pipes have
and Rajasthan, was to ensure year-round made them seem redundant.
History provides us with valuable les- water supply even during the long dry
sons on how to manage and conserve water spells the population had to face for most Stepwells were also constructed in
resources efficiently. Our ancestors had of the year. Maharashtra although they do not seem to
devised a number of techniques to do so be architecturally as elaborate as those
and these efforts helped to meet the water Many of these stepwells are intricately found in Gujarat and Rajasthan due to the
needs of not just the people but the live- carved and are looked upon even today as topography of the region. They are known
stock and agriculture as well in areas where architectural marvels. They typically have as baravs in local language and were con-
perennial rivers were absent and the popu- beautiful arches, carved motifs and some- structed to supply water perennially for
times, even rooms for rest and recreation.

Environment & people 28 May 2017

irrigation.
A barav in Limb village near Satara in Maharashtra serves

as a good example of the ingenuity of our ancestors in con-
structing water storage structures that not only provided
water for irrigation and served as resting places for travellers
but was also a meeting place for strategic planning by the
rulers of those times.

The well can be traced back to the times of the great
Maratha ruler Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj and was construct-
ed around 1719 to 1724 by queen Virubaisaheb Bhosale
(Loksatta, December 1, 2016). The well is octagonal in shape
and is made to resemble a shiva linga from the top and is pop-
ularly known as Bara motachi vihir meaning a well with 12 lift-
ing wheels. It is around 110 feet deep and 50 feet in circumfer-
ence.

“Limb village, located on the banks of river Krishna, is on a
higher elevation than the river. While drinking water was
often procured from the river, the well was mainly to meet the
irrigation needs as it was difficult to lift water from the river
located at a lower level for the fields in the village. The water
was used largely for the mango orchards around the area,” says
Dr Sachin Joshi, an expert in archaeology and a researcher
from Deccan College, Pune.

(Source: indiawaterportal.org)

May 2017 29 Environment & people

QuEocotes

Man shapes himself through decisions that shape his environ-
ment.

- Rene Dubos

We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if
mankind is to survive.

- Albert Einstein

The good building is not one that hurts the landscape, but one
which makes the landscape more beautiful than it was before the
building was built.

- Frank Lloyd Wright

Man has lost the capacity to foresee and to forestall. He will end
by destroying the earth.

- Albert Schweitzer

There can be no question about whether we should or should not
transform our society in the direction of sustainability.

- Alan AtKisson

A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability
and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends
otherwise.

- Aldo Leopold

The control man has secured over nature has far outrun his con-
trol over himself.

- Ernest Jones

I have no doubt that we will be successful in harnessing the sun's
energy...If sunbeams were weapons of war, we would have had
solar energy centuries ago.

- Sir George Porter

Because we don't think about future generations, they will never
forget us.

- Henrik Tikkanen

The sun, the moon and the stars would have disappeared long
ago...had they happened to be within the reach of predatory
human hands.

- Havelock Ellis

The future belongs to those who understand that doing more with
less is compassionate, prosperous and enduring and thus more
intelligent, even competitive.

- Paul Hawken

Environment & people 30 May 2017

Environmental 5th 2017 2nd International Conference Sustainable and Renewable Energy Engineering
Conferences in 8th (ICSREE 2017)--Ei Compendex and Scopus Hiroshima, Japan
May
8th 3rd International Conference on Research & Innovation in Environment, Civil and
8th Architecture Engineering (RIECAE-17) May 8-10, 2017 Dubai (UAE) Dubai, United Arab
8th Emirates
8th
9th International Conference on Civil and Environmental Engineering (ICOCEE 8-10 May
10th 2017 Cappadocia Nevsehir, Turkey
10th
10th International Conference on Architecture and Civil Engineering (ICACE 2017) Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia
11th
12th 2017 International Conference on Civil Engineering (ICOCE 2017)--EI Compendex,
13th Scopus, and ISI CPCS Hanoi, Vietnam
13th
14th 6th DUBAI International Conference on Civil, Agricultural, Biological and Environmental
15th Sciences (CABES-17) May 8-10, 2017 Dubai, United Arab Emirates
15th
16th 3rd National Adaptation Forum Saint Paul, United States of America
17th
17th 9th International Conference on Modern Trends in Science, Engineering and Technology
17th 2017 (ICMTSET 2017) Dubai, United Arab Emirates
18th
18th 2017 3rd International Conference on Food and Agricultural Engineering (ICFAE 2017)
19th Budapest, Hungary
22nd
3rd International Conference on Innovations in Chemical, Agricultural, Biological and
22nd Environmental Sciences (ICABES-2017) May 10-11, 2017 Dubai (UAE) Dubai, United Arab
22nd Emirates

International Ecology Symposium 2017 Kayseri, Turkey

Education, Leadership, Research, and Policy Academic Conference Washington DC, United
States of America

McGill Graduate Law Students Annual Conference 2017 Montreal, Canada

International Conference on Ecocriticism and Environmental Studies Warsaw, Poland

2017 9th International Conference on Bioinformatics and Biomedical Technology (ICBBT
2017) - Ei Compendex and Scopus Lisbon, Portugal

International Conference on Biological, Chemical and Environmental Sciences(CES2017 )
Nagoya, Japan

1st International Conference on Food, Environment and Culture Baguio City, Philippines

Interdisciplinary International Conference on Development, Environment and Socal
Welfare: Issues And Challenges Bangkok, Thailand

International Research Conference on Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering
(IRCCAEE-17) May 17-18, 2017 Istanbul (Turkey) Istanbul, Turkey

School Learning Space Design Sydney, Australia

5th International Conference on Waste Management, Ecology and Biological Sciences
(WMEBS-2017) ISTANBUL - Turkey Istanbul, Turkey

3rd International Conference SEA-CONF Constanta, Romania

4th International Conference Geography, Environment and GIS, for students and young
researchers Targoviste, Romania

International Congress on Cultural Heritage and Tourism Konya, Turkey

7th KUALA LUMPUR International Conference on Agricultural, Chemical, Biological and
Environmental Sciences (ACBES-2017) May 22-24, 2017 Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia

2nd Academic International Conference on Social Sciences and Humanities Cambridge,
United Kingdom

8th International Conference on Civil, Food, Ecological and Medical Sciences (CFEMS-
2017) May 22-24, 2017 Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) Kuala Lumpur, United States of America

May 2017 31 Environment & people

Environment & people 32 May 2017



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