environment december 2020

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Editorial

Advisors PESTICIDES-- PRECARIOUS TO PEOPLE AND ENVIRONMENT
Narne Prabhakar
Kaza Krishna Rao Doctors at All India Institute of Medical Sciences found symptoms of lead and nickel poi-
Dr. N. Harinath soning in the reports of Eluru (Andhra Pradesh)patients who are suffering from mys-
Dr. V. Haraprasad tery illness.Experts are of the opinion that these metals are present in the agro chemi-
cals .This is not new. Endosulfan used in in cashew nut cultivation is the cause for 1000 deaths
Advisory Board and 5000 mentally retarded in in Kasaragod district, Kerala between 1975-2000. In 2013 23
M. Gopala Krishna, IAS (Retd.) children died after eating mid day meal containing Monochrotophos in Bihar. In 2018, 50 farm-
C.S. Ramalakshmi, I.F.S, ers died while spraying insecticides in Maharashtra. Increased cancer prevalence in in certain
Dr. N. Bhaskara Rao districts of Punjab has been tied to the use of certain pesticides.Centre for Science and
Prof. P.G. Sastry Environment has recorded nearly 4 major chemical accidents a month in the three years to
Er. G. Prabhakar 2019.Experts say this is an understatement since many cases go unregistered.The grim fact is
Prof. D.N. Reddy that the annual average of fatal pesticide poisonings in the country is about 30,000 and could
Dr. Rameshwar Rao see an increase if the government does not regulate the industry. India is the biggest user of
S. Raghupathy pesticides in the world after China and far ahead of United States of America. On the other side
Prof. I.V. Muralikrishna Federation of Indian Chambers and Industry talks about huge unrealized potential for growth
of agrochemical industry and wants more and more concessions for their production and
Editor export. Of the 318 pesticides used in India, 18 are classified as highly hazardous and 104 pes-
Dr. P. Narayana Rao ticides banned in two or more countries. In 2015, the government set up a committee led by
Anupam Verma a leading agricultural scientist to review 66 of the pesticides in hazardous cat-
Associate Editor egory. on May 18th 2020 a draft ban order was put out for public feedback by the Ministry of
Dr.B.Ramana Naik Agriculture and Farmers Welfare proposing a ban on the manufacture, sale and imports of 27
pesticides in India. Unfortunately with the pressure from industry the agricultural ministry
Sub - editor was asked to put the draft order on hold on the pretext of more stakeholder consultations.
Swarajyam P.
We know that pesticides contaminate soil ,water, turf and other vegetation. In addition to
Design killing insects or weeds,pesticides are toxic to other organisms like birds, fish, beneficial
[email protected] insects and non-target plants. Pesticides have contaminated almost every part of our envi-
ronment.So the alternatives like organic farming and natural farming being done by the farm-
Edited, Printed & Published by ers have to be encouraged through incentives by the government. Investing in organic agri-
P. Narayana Rao on behalf of soci- culture can help us achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by increasing and stabilizing
ety for environment and educa- yields, improving resistance to pests and diseases while battling poverty and malnutrition and
tion, hyderabad. to achieve zero hunger (Goal#2),good health and wellbeing(Goal #3) and responsible produc-
tion and consumption(Goal#12). We have to raise awareness among farming community to
Address for communication bring pressure on the respective governments to regulate the use of pesticides in agriculture.
302, Padma Nilayam,
St.No. 1, Shanti Nagar, December 2019 3 Environment & people
Hyderabad - 500 028.

email: [email protected]
contact: 9247385331

(The views expressed by authors
may not be necessarily be the
same as those of magazine)

Persisting symptoms even after

testing Covid Negative? get screened! 5

content Under Its ‘Health Cannot Wait’

Campaign, NGO Smile Foundation

Is Promoting Hygiene And Sanitation Amid COVID-19 8

Best Places To Visit In Assam In December 12

We Need Nature and Biodiversity if We Want a

Sustainable Future 16

Removing forest dwellers from areas to

protect biodiversity costs more than involving them: report 18

‘King Of Jackfruits’, Ratnagiri Farmer

Grows 75 Varieties Of Fruit On His Farm 22

Light vehicles rev up India’s Decentralised renewables can build resilient rural India 24
electric mobility market
14 Organic composting offers hope to deal with stubble burning 26

200 Years Ago, People Discovered Antarctica.

The Slaughter Began Soon After. 28

Storms and floods new normal in pandemic year 30

Eco quotes 32

Eco facts 33

Eco cartoonsq 34

Farmers Will (Again) Feed the World 6 India Generated Over
18,000 Tonnes Of COVID-19
10

Environment & people 4 December 2019

Narayana Health walking COVID Recovery Programme
Mood changes or depression Even after testing negative, it might
India’s COVID 19 recovery rates are Persistent diarrhoea, rapid weight
amongst the highest in the world due take weeks or months for a patient to
to the continued efforts of the gov- loss and other Digestive issues fully recover and feel 100% active &
ernment and Healthcare warriors from Trouble thinking or concentrating, healthy again. It is also important to
the frontline. Over 81 lakh patients have note that the COVID infection may
officially recovered from the COVID 19 dizziness, confusion silently affect the patient’s lungs, heart,
infection in our country (till 13th Short term memory loss or loss of kidney, nerves or any other organ – the
November 2020). However, there are symptoms of which may not be notice-
growing reports of people experiencing sense able immediately but may have long
what is clinically known as Post-COVID Bruising & rashes on the skin term disabling effects.
Syndrome. Loss of appetite, taste and smell
Disturbed sleep pattern (insomnia) Therefore, there is a need of a com-
Post-COVID Syndrome Abnormal heart rate prehensive programme that would
Post-COVID Syndrome means that Possible Complications post COVID enable complete clinical assessment of
the patient by a team of specialists – who
people continue to experience debilitat- infection shall assess the patient’s health in its
ing symptoms that persist (for days or entirety, ensure that the patient gets
months) even after testing negative for Permanent Scarring of Lungs timely diagnosis & treatment and recov-
the virus. Persisting symptoms or Deterioration in lung capacity or ers completely.
Complications post COVID is not only
restricted to patients with a severe case functioning The intent of the programme is to
of infection (who required hospitaliza- Inflammation in body try and bring the patient to his Pre-covid
tion), even patients who had recovered The weakening of nerves or muscles state (how much ever possible) through
from a mild case of the virus could suffer timely diagnosis, accurate & targeted
from prolonged effects of the virus. in the body treatment, right nutritional advice &
Reduction in Heart Functioning physiotherapy which aims at strength-
Persisting Symptoms post-COVID Lasting Kidney or Liver damage ening lung & muscles.
Prolonged breathing difficulty
Extreme tiredness/weakness (common in people with sepsis during (Source: narayanahealth.org)
Muscle or nerve weakness; numb- COVID)

ness Abnormally high Sugar levels (even
Inability to walk and stumbling while in people without diagnosed diabetes)

Heart Attack or Brain Stroke due to
increased risk of Blood Clot formation

Weakened Immune system leaving
you susceptible to other diseases

The blurring of vision or hearing loss
Need for a Comprehensive Post

December 2019 5 Environment & people

Farmers Will (Again) Feed

the World

Danielle Nierenberg pandemic adds to the miseries of commu- the climate and bio-diversity. The true
nities already labouring under conflict, the impact of food production and consump-
Danielle Nierenberg is President and climate crisis, economic slowdowns and, in tion needs a far better understanding and
Founder Food Tank: Highlighting east Africa, desert locusts. Every percent- cost accounting.
stories of hope and success in the age drop in global GDP means 700,000
food system more stunted children, according to UN Resetting the Food System from Farm
estimates. to Fork, a virtual event hosted on
Wealthier countries struggling to con- December 1 by the Barilla Center for Food
tain the widening COVID-19 pandemic All this means the world is dangerously & Nutrition in partnership with Food
amid protests over lockdowns and restric- off track in its efforts to meet the UN Tank, will help set the stage for the UN
tions risk ignoring an even greater danger Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, 2021 Food Systems Summit.
out there – a looming global food emer- with food systems underpinning all 17 of
gency. those targets. Experts will present concrete, practical
solutions to re-align food systems with
Even before the virus surfaced nearly a Yet we do produce enough food for the human needs and planetary boundaries to
year ago, an estimated 690 million people world’s 7.8 billion people. It’s our food sys- become more resilient, inclusive and sus-
around the world were undernourished, tems that are broken. Hunger is rising even tainable in the aftermath of the pandemic
144 million or 21 per cent of children as the world wastes and loses more than and beyond.
under five-years-old were stunted, and one billion tonnes of food every year.
about 57 per cent of people in sub-Saharan The conference will highlight the
Africa and South Asia could not afford a About one third of all food produced for important role of smallholders and women
healthy diet. human consumption goes to waste, accord- who make up a sizeable proportion of the
ing to the Food and Agriculture agricultural workforce – 43 percent on
The ranks of the chronically food inse- Organization of the United Nations, with average in developing countries, according
cure are rising dramatically in 2020 as the consumers in rich countries wasting almost to FAO, the UN food agency.
as much food as the entire net production
of sub-Saharan Africa. Women are tending to bear the brunt
of hunger, but as farmers, innovators and
With agriculture and the current food decision-makers, they need to be involved
system responsible for around 21 to 37 per for real change to happen. They are the
cent of total greenhouse gas emissions, our backbone of the rural economy, especially
food choices matter not just for health and in poorer countries, but receive only a frac-
social justice, but also for their impact on tion of the land, credit, inputs such as

Environment & people 6 December 2019

improved seeds and fertilizers, agricultural training and informa-
tion compared to men.

Africa is a huge net importer of food but 75 per cent of crops
grown in sub-Saharan Africa are produced by smallholder farms,
with family farms estimated to number over 100 million. Women
do the bulk of weeding work while three-quarters of children aged
5 to 14 are forced to leave school and do farm labour at peak times.

Sixty percent of Africa’s total population are below 25 year, yet
countries are struggling to keep young people involved in agricul-
ture and agribusiness.

Our challenge is to transform food systems so that people are
no longer food insecure and can afford a healthy diet while at the
same time ensuring environmental sustainability. There is no one-
size-fits-all solution for countries, and policy-makers lack reliable
data on the whole spectrum of food production.

The Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition has a 10-point action
plan for fixing the global food system, and improving standards,
terminology and measurement are among those priorities. Its
Food Sustainability Index, developed with the Economist
Intelligence Unit, uses the three pillars of nutrition, sustainable
agriculture, and food loss and waste to provide a tool that can shed
light on the progress countries are making on the path to a more
sustainable food system.

The COVID-19 pandemic may add between 83 and 132 million
people to the total number of undernourished in the world this
year alone, depending on the scale of the economic slowdown,
according to preliminary assessments.

Disruptions have raised food costs, made it more difficult for
farmers to access seeds, animal feed and fertilisers, and resulted in
higher post-harvest losses as food rots uncollected on farms.

In the words of UN Special Envoy Agnes Kalibata: “Countries
face an agonizing trade-off between saving lives or livelihoods or,
in a worst-case scenario, saving people from COVID-19 to have
them die from hunger.”

The problems facing our food systems for years have been
highlighted by this crisis, as have the numerous frailties of global
supply chains and the state of national health systems.

Let us seize this opportunity presented by the pandemic and
shape a resilient food system that is sustainable, fairer, and health-
ier for all people and the planet.

(Source: ipsnews.net)

December 2019 7 Environment & people

NGO Smile Foundation has dis- Campaign, NGO Smile Foundation Is sensitising children studying in its Mission
tributed over 1.5 lakh hygiene kits Promoting Hygiene And Sanitation Amid Education centres and their parents on pre-
to ensure that along with aware- COVID-19 cautionary hygiene measures. Under the
ness, vulnerable families also ambit of ‘Health Cannot Wait’, Smile
have access to basic hygiene care I have elderly parents at home and it is Foundation’s health team took up the task
essential for us to protect both ourselves of education and information through its
Aastha Ahuja and our parents, who are at a higher risk of tele counselling programme ‘Baaton
contracting the disease, from COVID-19. Baaton Mein Sehat’ and WhatsApp and
“ To kill germs and fight My younger son looks up to Samriddhi and some of the teachers went door-to-door to
Coronavirus, we should wash our learns from her. Everyone in the house do the needful.
hands with soap for 20-30 sec- washes hands more than they used to and
onds. While washing hands, we should wear a mask while going out and always Talking to NDTV about the idea and
scrub all surfaces of the hands including avoid crowded places. motive behind initiating hygiene and sani-
the back of hands, between fingers and tation initiative during the COVID-19 pan-
under nails thoroughly”, explains Similarly, Manjula from Bengaluru, demic, Santanu Mishra, Co-founder and
Samriddhi Pramanik, a student of class 4, working as a housekeeping staff in a school Executive Trustee, Smile Foundation, said,
from Sundarbans in West Bengal. Before supported by NGO Smile Foundation,
the Coronavirus pandemic, Samriddhi ensures hand washing every hour. She With the threat of the virus spreading
would practice hand hygiene casually and believes by practising hygiene she will not fast it was crucial to orient and communi-
would wash hands before eating, after only protect her children but people cate to the community especially the chil-
using a toilet and at other crucial times. around her as well. That’s Manjula’s way of dren who fall under the vulnerable group,
However, now, Samriddhi washes her contributing to society. Talking about the on good hygiene practices to be followed in
hands more frequently and encourages her lessons she learnt on COVID precautionary order to stay protected and safe. The lock-
family to do the same. Explaining how the measures, Manjula said, down followed by a shutdown of schools
family is practising hygiene, one of the made it difficult to reach out to the chil-
COVID precautionary measures, Pradipta In a community meeting in school, stu- dren and the families directly, therefore, it
Pramanik, Samriddhi’s father said, dents and we parents were educated about was essential to initiate information and
the need for hygiene practices. We also saw education communication initiatives
Under Its ‘Health Cannot Wait’ advertisements on TV asking people to through tele counseling, messages through
wash hands, wear a mask and maintain WhatsApp and centre staff connecting
social distance to fight COVID-19. with the community regularly.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pan- Teachers received training online on
demic in India, NGO Smile Foundation is

Environment & people 8 December 2019

hygiene and good practices as precaution- same time how handwashing can safe-
ary measures for COVID-19 and further guard us. Secondly, often people living in
trained the students and community. slums don’t adhere to wearing face masks
Health and well-being sessions were con- probably because of the lack of knowl-
ducted with parents with an objective to edge. We went door-to-door to distribute
orient them about health and hygiene masks and educate on how to wear a mask
related practices to be followed; social dis- and how it protects from getting the
tancing protocols to be adhered to during virus.
the pandemic; ensuring emotional and
general well-being of their families to nav- Mr Mishra added that the messages
igate the crisis. were disseminated through skits, posters,
and slogans as well.
Explaining how the team conveys the
message, Tapas, working with Smile Deenu Verma, mother of Surabhi
Foundation as the Regional Officer of Verma studying at one of the Mission
East region, said, Education Centres in Chhattisgarh,
informed that during the nationwide
Without getting into the nitty gritties lockdown, Smile Foundation team used to
of the disease, we educate the focused counsel over phone and even distributed
group about basic precautions like hand- pamphlets for education purpose. In addi-
washing. People say they wash hands but tion to this, Anjum Khatoon, mother of

not many wash it with soap that too the Mohd Ejaz, a student of Ina Raja
right way so we demonstrate the 11 steps Memorial Education Trust in Delhi, said,
of handwashing as explained by the World
Health Organisation and how soap kills We were provided hygiene kits con-
germs. Secondly, we stress upon the use sisting of soap, sanitizer and masks.
of face masks so as to protect one from
droplets. According to Mr Mishra, the initiative
‘Baaton Baaton Mein Sehat’ has reached
Priyanka, one of the teachers at out to over 60,000 people across India
Mission Education Centre SHED in since April 20. In addition to this, the
Kalina, Mumbai said that they mandated foundation has distributed over 1.5 lakh
the use of face mask even before the hygiene kits to ensure that along with
nationwide lockdown and restricted the awareness, vulnerable families also have
entries of those not abiding by the guide- access to basic hygiene care. While signing
lines. The team also educated students off, Mr Mishra said,
about the symptoms of COVID-19 so that
they can communicate with their elders Through all of this, there is increased
or teachers if they think they have con- awareness among the community mem-
tracted the disease. Talking about the bers who are now more cautious of their
challenges on the ground, Priyanka said, cleanliness, seek medical help timely,
ensure their kids do not venture out fre-
Young children don’t necessarily quently and have increased practice of
understand and adopt the concept of good hygiene.
handwashing. We showed video tutorials;
how the disease can affect us and at the (Source: swachhindia.ndtv.com/)

December 2019 9 Environment & people

The COVID-19 related bio- increase in bio-medical waste and

medical waste generation in this was expected. She added,

India has increased from People are no longer waiting

3,025.41 tonnes in June to for the COVID-19 pandemic to go

5,490 tonnes in September and postponing their regular

Aastha Ahuja healthcare treatments. They are

The COVID-19 pandemic has undergoing treatments as routine.
burdened India’s already
stressed waste management Hence, bio-medical waste is being
system. According to the data
shared by Central Pollution generated from non-COVID hospi-
Control Board (CPCB), India gen-
tals and nursing homes as well.
erated over 18,000 tonnes of
COVID-19 related bio-medical In September, Gujarat generat-
waste between June and
September. This includes per- ed 622.89 tonnes of COVID-19 bio-
sonal protective equipment
(PPE), gloves, face masks, head medical waste, followed by Tamil
cover, plastic coverall, hazmet
suit, syringes among other Nadu (543.78 tonnes) and

gears and medical equipment Maharashtra (524.82 tonnes).
used by both healthcare
providers and patients. The CPCB data states that about
amount of COVID-19 relat-
ed bio-medical waste has been on 198 Common Bio-medical Waste
the rise. In June, India generated
3,025.41 tonnes of COVID-19 Treatment Facilities (CBWTFs) are
related bio-medical waste; in July
the number rose to 4,253.46 involved in the treatment and dis-
tonnes and further spiked to
5,238.45 tonnes in August and posal of COVID-19 bio-medical
5,490 tonnes in September.
On an average, India generated waste across the country.
about 183 tonnes of COVID-19
related bio-medical waste per day NDTV spoke to industry
in September. Back in June, the
figure stood at 101 tonnes per day. experts to know how India can
This quantity is in addition to the
regular bio-medical waste genera- reduce its COVID specific bio-med-
tion of about 609 MT per day (as of
June, 2020). According to Sourabh ical waste generation. Dr
Manuja, Fellow, Centre for Waste
Management, Environment & Ghanshamnani suggested three
Waste Management Division at
The Energy and Resources crucial steps – define COVID
Institute (TERI), the rise in waste
generation is directly related to the waste; identify different types of
number of cases.
Dr Lata Ghanshamnani, waste generators; launch a large
Ophthalmologist and co-founder
of NGO RNisarg Foundation, is of scale campaign for education and
the opinion that now routine non-
COVID healthcare work has awareness related to PPE usage for
increased which has led to an
both healthcare and non-health-

care sectors. Elaborating on the

same, Dr Ghanshamnani said,

COVID waste is generated in

COVID hospitals, dedicated COVID

care centre, home quarantine, and

other non-healthcare establish-

ment like salons, hotels, and home.

COVID-19 related waste generated

at non- healthcare establishments

can be potentially contaminated

but is currently being discarded as

dry waste as per the CPCB guide-

lines. Therefore, we need to identi-

fy waste generators.

Further talking about a need

for large scale campaign for educa-

tion and awareness related to PPE

usage for both healthcare and non-

healthcare sectors, Dr

Ghanshamnani said,

Tailor made suggestions should

be made for healthcare sector

based on the hierarchy of ‘Rethink,

Refuse, Reduce and Recycle’. For

example, encourage appropriate

Environment & people 10 December 2019

use of PPE based on exposure levels of the designed for domestic solid waste, CPCB to segregate the waste into four streams as
health care worker; encourage reusable had stated in its report. per the Guidelines for Quarantine Facility
alternatives without compromising the COVID-19 issued by the Ministry of
safety; encourage PPE materials that have Talking about the ways to deal with Housing and Urban Affairs.
easily available recycling options. For non- non-segregation of waste, Dr
healthcare sector, in addition to the afore- Ghanshamnani said education and aware- 1. Eye protection goggles, recyclable
mentioned points, we need to educate and ness in the community are two keys here. materials like pens, plastic water bottles
make people aware about the importance To this, Mr Manuja added, and bed sheets are to be kept in red bins.
of hand hygiene and social distancing over The collected waste is to be disinfected
the unnecessary use of PPE especially the People need to understand what goes in through autoclave or microwave or hydro-
hazmet suits. their yellow bins/bags and general waste. clave and sent for recycling.
Recyclables which can be isolated for up to
Mr Manuja also emphasised on the 3-5 days after quarantine is over can be 2. Sharp waste including metals is to be
2Rs’ of waste management hierarchy – stored and not rejected as bio-medical discarded in white bins. For the treatment,
reduce and reuse. He added, waste. This will help reduce waste burdens sterilisation is to be followed by shredding
of bio-medical waste to be handled via or containers mutilation or encapsulation.
If waste gets properly segregated at municipalities.
source and managed appropriately the bur- 3. Glassware, tube light, CFL bulbs,
dens on the environment can be reduced, As per the CPCB guidelines, masks and LED used in quarantine facility are to be
following guidelines which allow many
waste streams to be recycled after process- gloves used by people other than COVID- kept separately in a cardboard box marked
ing (disinfection). Appropriate training and 19 patients, whether infected or not, blue. The waste is to be disinfected and
capacity building on segregation of waste should be cut and kept in paper bags for a sent for recycling.
at source will certainly help reduce bio- minimum of 72 hours before discarding it
medical waste that is to be incinerated. as dry general solid waste. The same rule 4. Used personal protective equipment
There is a need to spread larger awareness applies for discarding PPEs (Personal (PPE), gloves, shoe covers, head covers, dis-
among waste generators and managers. For Protective Equipments) by the general pub- posable bed sheets, and PPE with spill is to
the general public, who are not quaran- lic at commercial establishments, shopping be discarded in a yellow bin and incinerated
tined, reusable masks, gloves and other malls, institutions, and offices. or buried in deep pits.
PPEs can help reduce waste burden.
People in home quarantine should seg- (Source: swachhindia.ndtv.com)
Mr Manuja also specified that whatever regate their COVID-19 related waste that
we cannot reduce and has to be incinerated includes masks, tissues, cotton swabs and
should be of lightest feasible weight, to other waste into a yellow bag so that it can
reduce burdens for bio-medical waste man- go for incineration.
agement facilities.
Similarly, hospitals, nursing homes,
Swati Sambyal, a Delhi-based waste and other healthcare establishments need
management expert resonated with Mr
Manuja on the point of waste segregation
at source. She asserted that,

The pandemic has definitely increased
the quantities of waste, but one major fac-
tor that has been attributed to increased
levels of bio-medical waste generation is
non-segregation. Obviously, this also
increases the quantum of waste generated.
This is creating a problem, but awareness is
an issue here.

As per the provisions under Bio-med-
ical Waste Management Rules, 2016, Solid
Waste Management Rules, 2016 and
CPCB’s COVID-19 guidelines, segregation
of wastes is essential for effective manage-
ment of wastes. The CPCB has reported
improper segregation of waste from
COVID-19 isolation wards, quarantine cen-
tres and quarantine homes.

Mixing of general solid waste with bio-
medical waste would result in additional
load on CBWTF incinerators, which are not

December 2019 11 Environment & people

Best Places To Visit In Assam
In December

Vi Dev more than nature, you'd be glad to know most novel Assam destinations. Also,
that a few movie scenes from Rangoon abode to more than 50 species of fish, itis
Nothing could be a more suitable were shot in this location. So, just get your unbelievably rich in fauna, which con-
choice for a winter vacation in India camera out, pick your spot and capture a tributes majorly to its captivating land-
than vibrant Assam! From observ- few of your special moments. forms and picturesque charm.
ing the most happening festivities to laying
freely on the lush rolling hills all day, every- Haflong Hill Kakochang Waterfalls
thing happens on a higher level in the land One of the most popular attractions in Gushing down furiously between the
of hills and valleys. Imagine playing a game
of football with your buddies or exploring Assam, Haflong Hill is famous for exciting coffee and rubber estates of Jorhat in
the historical monuments and wildlife activities like trekking & paragliding. Assam, the Kakochang Waterfalls are an
sanctuaries. Sounds ultimate vacation? Not Encircled with mesmerizing greenery and exalted wonder of nature. Located about 13
just this, but Assam offers many such forest, this is a beautiful hill that is sure to km away from the Bokakhat, this magnifi-
unparalleled experiences that will leave you sweep you off your feet. The view of the cent waterfall attracts tourists and trav-
amazed! Here are the best places to visit in hills around and the verdant surroundings ellers in great numbers around the year.
Assam in December. offer an ideal opportunity to up your Apart from offering a delightful panorama
Instagram game! Orang National Park for nature lovers and shutterbugs alike,
Panimoor Falls Nestled calmly on the northern shores of Kakochang waterfall gives imposing views
Although it is situated over a 180 km the Brahmaputra, Orang National Park or of the lush green tea plantations and ruins
Rajiv Gandhi National Park is another des- of Numaligarh. Settled close to the
away from Guwahati, Panimoor Falls is one tination you must visit in Assam this win- Kaziranga National Park, it is among the
of the main autumn attractions in Assam. ter. Boasting of Assam's one-horned rhi- must-visit destinations in Assam in
If you're a film buff and that fascinates you nos, Orang National Park is among the December.

Environment & people 12 December 2019

Majuli Island places to visit in Assam in December
Majuli's captivating panoramas and should be on the bucket list of
every tourist and traveller visiting
make it one of the top winter destina- Assam. Far-famed as the Peacock
tions in Assam. Far-famed as the Island, this miniature islet owes its rep-
world's most extensive river island, utation to its location bang in the mid-
Majuli island, draws tens and thou- dle of river Brahmaputra and the fact
sands of people every year. It covers an that it is easily accessible from its near-
area of around 450 sq km and most of est city, Guwahati. Umananda Island is
the smaller islands get submerged among the most miniature islands of
underwater during the monsoon sea- the world and is home to the famed
son; leaving the larger islands like Umananda Temple devoted to Lord
Auniati, Kamalabari, and Garamur on Shiva.
the surface. Apart from having striking
natural beauty, Majuli is transformed Kaziranga National Park
into a birdwatcher's heaven during win- Abode to two-thirds of the planet's
ter; this is why it's best to visit Majuli
Island in Assam in December. population of the one-horned rhinocer-
os, Kaziranga National Park is also a
Kamakhya Temple World Heritage Site and a significant
Located atop Nilachal Hills, this highlight on the Assam autumn tourist
destinations map. It's vigorous, well-
sacred temple carries a myth to shield preserved ecology, and varied biodiver-
devotees from sinful eyes. It's one of sity is what contributes attracts mil-
the most popular destinations to visit lions of tourists from across the world.
in Assam for pilgrims and tourists alike Besides one-horned Rhino, the park
owing to its astounding spiritual adora- draws its popularity from other rare
tion. One among the 49 Shakti Peeths exotic animals like the Elephants,
in India, this temple's main deity is Swamp Deer, Wild Buffalos, Bengal
Daksha Yagna (Death Incarnation) and Foxes, Chinese Pangolins, Sloth Bears,
Lord Shiva. Gibbons, Civets, Leopards, and Flying
Squirrels to name a few.
Umananda Island
This sacred island is among the best (Source: nativeplanet.com)

December 2019 13 Environment & people

Light vehicles rev up India’s
electric mobility market

Soumya Sarkar adoption curve, followed by e-buses and conventional scooters and motorcycles.
passenger taxis,” according to Shifting
In a promising outlook for light mobility, Gears, a report by KPMG, a consultancy, Total cost of ownership
penetration of electric 3-wheelers in and Confederation of Indian Industry, an The total cost of ownership of electric
India may rise up to 75% by 2030, fol- industry body.
lowed by 2-wheelers at 35% 2-wheelers, the largest selling segment in
By 2030, 3-wheeler adoption is expect- the Indian auto market, are already lower
Light electric mobility, which include 2- ed to be around 65-70%, the report pre- than those run on petrol, the report
and 3-wheelers, will lead the penetration of dicted. “Electric vehicles have the potential claimed. The penetration of electric 2-
electric vehicles in India, a new report has to emerge as vital options for last-mile wheelers could be between 25% and 35%
predicted, provided there is increasing col- delivery of lightweight goods and last-mile by 2030, it estimated.
laboration between manufacturers and transportation of passengers for shorter
both federal and state governments. distances,” it said. Since the operating cost of electric 2-
and 3-wheelers is much lower than vehicles
“Electric vehicles are on course to fulfil The prospect for 2-wheelers is also running on internal combustion engines,
their promise as a gamechanger for the bright as there is now a wide range of choic- there is a strong case for a shift to electric
automobile industry, with 2-wheeler and 3- es at attractive price points available in vehicles in the business-to-business seg-
wheeler auto segments likely to lead the India that are comparable with the cost of ment, according to Rohan Rao, partner,
industrials and automotive, KPMG India.

India’s electric light mobility scenario is
similar to the emergence of China’s electric
vehicles market, where electric bikes and
scooters laid the foundation for growth.

However, the penetration of electric
passenger cars is expected to remain muted
in the country, KPMG said. Only 10% to
15% of all cars in India in 2030 will run on
electricity, the report said, since there are
still formidable cost barriers to their wide-
spread adoption.

On the flip side, city buses are “ripe” for
electric adoption, the report said, and are
likely to be followed by fleet cabs run by
online taxi services.

Compelling case for adoption
Vehicular emissions are a major issue

in India cities, accounting for some 40%
of air pollution. India held the worst
pollution record in 2019, with 21 out of
the 30 most polluted cities in the world.
Average air pollution levels in Indian
cities were 8-11 times the level recom-
mended by Word Health Organisation.
India has over two million pollution-
linked deaths annually, the most in the
world, and air pollution is an immense
drain on resources, costing India the

equivalent of 5.4% of GDP, according
to a February 2020 report by
Greenpeace, an environmental

Environment & people 14 December 2019

activist group.
In addition to vehicular pollution, India is

also trying to curb its crude oil import bill,
which in the financial year ended March 2020
stood at USD 102 billion, accounting for some
80% of the country’s oil needs.

“Despite the compelling case for adoption,
the success of electric vehicles so far has been
constrained by weak customer appetite and
infrastructure roadblocks, among other fac-
tors,” the KPMG report said. “Many electric
vehicles introduced in India have fallen short
of customer expectations, with concerns lin-
gering on upfront costs, range, speed, battery
life and battery technology.”

The growth of electric vehicles sales has
remained muted in India, with the exception
of 3-wheelers. In 2019, about 100,000 electric

3-wheelers powered by lithium ion batteries
were sold in the country, with a penetration
rate of 14.3%.

There are more than a million locally
assembled e-rickshaws that run on lead acid
batteries on Indian roads, KPMG estimates.

Policymakers in India have been actively
pushing EV adoption in recent years.
Government think-tank NITI Aayog said in a
2019 report that the second phase of Faster
Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and
Electric Vehicles (FAME II) and other schemes
supporting electric mobility could push sales
penetration to 30% for private cars, 70% for
commercial cars, 40% for buses and 80% for
2- and 3-wheelers by 2030.

(Source: indiaclimatedialogue.net)

December 2019 15 Environment & people

By Samira Sadeque

“Investing in nature is investing in a sustainable
future,” was one of the key messages from yesterday’s
first-ever United Nations Summit on Biodiversity
where world leaders and experts agreed on the urgency to
act swiftly to preserve biodiversity globally.

“More than 60 percent of the world’s coral reefs are
endangered due to overfishing, destructive practices and cli-
mate change,” U.N. Secretary General António Guterres said
in his opening remarks at the biodiversity summit, which
was held as the 75th Session of the U.N. General Assembly
wrapped up this week.

This loss doesn’t come without a cost.
Guterres added that according to an Organisation for

Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimate,
the amount of money required for sustainability of nature is
about $300 – 400 billion, which is less than “current levels of
harmful subsidies for agriculture, mining and other destruc-
tive industries”.

Guterres also pointed out how this disproportionately
affects poor communities.

According to the Convention on Biological Diversity,
between 50 to 90 percent of the livelihoods of poor house-
holds comes from ecosystems.

“Nature offers business opportunities to poor commu-
nities, from sustainable farming to eco-tourism or subsis-

tence fishing,” Guterres said.
This year was especially crucial given the COVID-19

pandemic and the havoc it wreaked across communi-
ties around the world.

Volkan Bozkir, president of the General
Assembly, pointed out the world’s inability to
ensure preservation of biodiversity severely

impedes the ability to fight diseases — a result
that is being witnessed first hand this year. It

also negatively affects food security, water
supplies, and livelihoods, among other issues.
“We must be pragmatic: our healthcare

Environment & people 16 December 2019

systems rely upon rich biodiversity,” “critical” to this conversation. This Railway Officer’s
Bozkir said. “Four billion people “Let’s recall they are the owners
depend upon natural medicines for Wedding Invite Grows
their health, and 70 percent of drugs and managers of one quarter of global
used for cancer treatments are drawn land area, and one third of protected Into 6 Types of Plants!
from nature.” areas,” Andersen said. “So safeguard-
ing their right to their land is part of ANJALI DONEY
“More than half of the world’s GDP safeguarding biodiversity.”
– $44 trillion – is dependent on Weddings and their trappings tend to be
nature,” he added. Ana Maria Hernandez Salgar, the wasteful and costly, both on pockets
first woman chair of the and the environment. But it needn’t
Chinese president Xi Jinping Intergovernmental Science-Policy always be the case, as this Railway officer has
addressed the meeting, extending a Platform on Biodiversity and demonstrated.
warm welcome for next year’s Ecosystem Services (IPBES), also
Conference of the Parties to the shared a similar sentiment as she Shashikanth Korravath, an Indian Railway
Convention on Biological Diversity reflected on what, in her experience, Traffic Service (IRTS) officer from Shadnagar,
(COP 15) scheduled to take place in has led to true change. Telangana, designed an eco-friendly invite for his
China. wedding. The card can be torn up and sown to
“We have to work collectively: gov- grow into three kinds of flower plants. The enve-
“COP15 offers an opportunity for ernments, individuals, private sector, lope is plantable too, with seeds of vegetable
parties to adopt new strategies for academia, we need to address the root plants embedded in it.
global biodiversity governance,” Xi cause of biodiversity loss – it works,”
said. Salgar said. The civil servant and his fiance have decided
to live their life together in a manner that’s good
Xi proposed a list of steps that Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, the for the world. And what better way to embark on
leaders can take in order to ensure bio- appointed Executive Secretary of the this new journey than with a green wedding!
diversity preservation around the Convention on Biological Diversity,
world: also spoke on the same panel and Shashikanth explained the thought behind
added that it’s important not to lose the plantable invites – papers deplete the earth’s
Adhere to ecological civilisation sight of the fact that biodiversity, on forests and also cause pollution when disposed
and increase the drive for building a top of being a concern, is also a solu- of improperly. A plantable card is a small attempt
beautiful world, given that a sound tion to some of the sustainable devel- at reversing the damage.
ecosystem is crucial for the prosperity opment goals (SDGs).
of civilisation. “We need to respect The couple plan on having an environmental-
nature, follow its laws, and protect it,” “We know, 14 out of the 17 SDGs friendly wedding function too, with minimal use
he said. “We need to find a way for depend on biodiversity, from nature- of plastic.
man and nature to live in harmony, based solutions, to climate, to food,
balance and coordinate economic water, security, sustainable livelihood: The CP of Cyberabad, Shri VC Sajjanagar, was
development and ecological protec- biodiversity remains the basis for sus- one of the many who were wowed by the
tion.” tainable future and sustainable devel- thoughtful wedding card and shared his appreci-
opment,” Mrema said. ation on social media. He urged everyone to fol-
Uphold multilateralism and build low this amazing example set by Shashikanth
synergy for global governance on the Perhaps the conversation on the and make choices that minimize pollution and
environment. “Faced with the risks link between biodiversity preservation safeguard our planet.
and challenges worldwide, countries and humans was most aptly put forth
share a common stake as passengers by Achim Steiner of the U.N. (Source: thebetterindia.com)
[on] the same boat, and form a com- Development Programme who moder-
munity with a shared future,” Xi said. ated the panel. December 2019 17 Environment & people
“To enhance global governance on the
environment, we must firmly safe- At the core of the preservation
guard the U.N.-centred international efforts is how we view the issue,
system, and uphold the sanctity and Steiner said.
authority of international rules.”
It’s not just about nature, it’s about
Continue with green development humans too.
and increase potential for high quality
economic recovery after COVID-19. “Biodiversity has as much to do
with nature as it has to do with people,
Meanwhile, panelists at a “Fireside people’s dependence on nature, peo-
Chat” panel brought up the impor- ple’s inability to see the complexities of
tance of including indigenous commu- nature, people’s blindness and some-
nities in the conversation. times greed and ignorance and also the
planetary blindspots of our
Inger Andersen, executive director economies.”
of the U.N. Environment Programme,
said the indigenous community is (Source: ipsnews.net)

Removing forest dwellers from
areas to protect biodiversity costs
more than involving them: report

Mayank Aggarwal lion (US$ 2.7 trillion), are required to reset- between US$ 4-5 trillion. In comparison,
tle India’s tribal communities and forest the projected cost of recognising tenure
Alatest report has highlighted that dwellers outside the important biodiversity rights of indigenous and local communities
over Rs 50 trillion – nearly one- areas compared to Rs 28.47 billion (US$ is less than one percent.
fourth of India’s annual gross 0.39 billion) required for implementing
domestic product – is the cost of resettling community-led rights-based conservation As per the report, India has the largest
tribal people and forest dwellers to areas by recognising their tenure rights on these number of people who would be affected
outside forests, for biodiversity conserva- lands. due to factors such as the coexistence of
tion. high biodiversity areas with highly dense
The figures have been released by the population. The second on the list is China.
This is more than 1750 times the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI) in its The estimated cost referred to in the report
amount, Rs 28.47 billion, that is required latest report, “Rights Based Conservation: is, however, only limited to the official cost
for community-based conservation by The path to preserving Earth’s biological that the government would incur for reha-
recognising their rights over the land and and cultural diversity?” on November 30. It bilitation.
making them partners in the conservation emphasises that indigenous and local com-
work. munities’ role is integral to achieving the Taking into consideration the projected
United Nations ambitious 2030 targets of costs required to settle forest dwellers out-
Experts argue that India has been fol- having 30 percent of Earth’s surface, across side biodiversity areas is important for
lowing the decades-old practice of develop- land and sea, as protected areas. India where there is regular debate on the
ing undisturbed forest areas even as there presence of tribal communities and forest
are enough successful examples of partner- The study emphasises that for achiev- dwellers in protected areas like national
ing with the local community for preserv- ing the global conservation goals, commu- parks and wildlife sanctuaries.
ing forests and wildlife habitats. nity-led conservation is the best way for-
ward as over 1.65 billion indigenous people Rights and Resources Initiative is a
The cost of relocating tribal people, for- and local communities worldwide, co-exist global coalition for advancing land and
est dwellers and pastoral communities for with biodiversity in areas significant for resource rights of local communities.
biodiversity conservation in India, is pro- conservation and thus hold the key to stop
jected to be over a thousand times more the global biodiversity collapse. The RRI report calculated the costs by
than the cost of community-based conser- estimating the number of people living in
vation, finds a new report. An estimated It estimated that the cost of displacing the important biodiversity conservation
Rs. 50 trillion (US$ 688 billion), equivalent and relocating 1.2-1.5 billion people living
to nearly one-fourth of India’s Gross in unprotected important biodiversity con-
Domestic Product of around Rs. 200 tril- servation areas across the world range

Environment & people 18 December 2019

areas, which were identified in a separate important for biodiversity conservation. He also stressed that the claim that co-
study by James Allan who is part of this “The current model of protected areas existence is not possible is based on poor
study as well, and overlaying it with spatial and biased data. “There has not been a sin-
population data; and then using rehabilita- based on the exclusion of people is not fea- gle experiment in the last 20-30 years
tion cost data from different World sible for effectively protecting biodiversity where co-management was genuinely tried
Bank/IFC (International Finance in India – the huge financial costs make it out… where the conservationists and the
Corporatoon) funded projects across the impossible, even if the cost of human suf- forest department made a serious attempt
world and taking their average. fering and cultural displacement is to try it out,” Lele told Mongabay-India.
ignored,” said Kumar.
The cost highlighted in the report pro- In India, over a fifth of the population –
vides a good estimate of the lowest cost Experts also highlight that forest an estimated 275 million rural poor includ-
required for rehabilitation incurred by the dwellers are rarely given a choice to make ing 89 million tribal people – depend on
government but doesn’t include the much an informed decision about living in or not Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) for a
larger social and cultural costs borne by the living in forests. substantial portion of their daily house-
communities. hold income.
“If they are being asked to decide with a
Involving forest dwellers is vital to pre- gun held to their heads, because no matter Tushar Dash, an independent
serving critical wildlife habitats what they say they will eventually be researcher on forest rights, said the RRI
thrown out of the forests on one pretext or report reinforces the point that communi-
Kundan Kumar, the director of the Asia another, then where is the freedom to
programme of the US-based Rights and ty-based conservation is the way forward
Resources Initiative and one of the co- decide?,” said Sharachchandra Lele, a dis- rather than taking a fortress approach for
authors, explained that there is now ample tinguished fellow at the Centre for conservation which focuses on creating
evidence that the best option for preserv- Environment and Development, Ashoka islands for wildlife excluding communities.
ing the critical wildlife habitats is to engage Trust for Research in Ecology and the
communities rather than pushing them Environment (ATREE). ”Globally, it is now scientifically accept-
out.

“Indian model of exclusionary protect-
ed areas is borrowed from the USA, where
indigenous people were evicted to create
large National Parks; this model is becom-
ing largely discredited across the world as
scientific evidence makes it clear that
indigenous people and local communities
have lived and nurtured biodiversity, and
are often much better at conserving it. 80
percent of terrestrial biodiversity left in the
world is now located in indigenous lands,”
Kumar told Mongabay-India.

He said that as per their study, India
has 270 million living in areas which are

December 2019 19 Environment & people

ed that conservation without co-existence tection. diverted for highways, train lines, dams
with forest dwellers, wildlife populations “The study makes it clear that exclu- and tourism”
can’t thrive. In India, the Forest Rights Act
2006 establish this principle that rights of sionary conservation is not feasible in He highlighted that according to RRI’s
communities need to be recognised in pro- India … instead landscape and rights-based study, in India, 21.4 percent (62.5 million
tected areas but in implementation, it has conservation based on the Forest Rights hectares) of forest and other commons is
found no support,” Dash told Mongabay- Act is the only option. Forest Rights Act is customarily claimed and accessed by tribal
India. one of the most progressive laws in the people, forest dwellers or pastoralist com-
Successful community conservation world for not only redressing historical munities but less than five percent of this
can lead to forest growth injustices by recognising forest rights; its claimed area is recognised as community
also perhaps the most powerful legal forests under the FRA 2006. He stressed
India has about 104 million tribal peo- instrument available for conservation by both communities and conservation
ple which is about nine percent of the enjoining rightsholders to protect biodi- groups can leverage the Forest Rights Act
country’s total population. They primarily versity and by its Critical Wildlife Habitat to create an upsurge of grassroots ecologi-
live in and around forest areas and areas (CWH Provision),” said RRI’s Kundan cal revitalisation and restoration while pro-
that are important from the perspective of Kumar. tecting biodiversity on a landscape model.

biodiversity. Over the past few years, India He asserted that the “CWH provides for Experts note that this is despite sever-
has seen an intense debate over the role of al successful community conservation
tribal communities and other forest strict, inviolate protection for areas where cases recorded across India where recogni-
dwellers in conservation. it can be scientifically proven with rigorous tion of community rights over forests has
evidence that co-existence of humans with led to a resurgence in protection, conserva-
The Forest Rights Act 2006 that aims wildlife is not possible at all. Only in that tion and restoration of forests and other
to give tenure rights to tribal people and case, it allows removal of people after free, commons. In fact, many believe the FRA
forest dwellers has itself been a part of the prior and informed consent is obtained.” 2006 is one of the best legal solutions for
debate during which its abolition was dis- encouraging biodiversity conservation.
cussed in the Supreme Court. Had the Act “More important, once an area
been abolished, it would have led to the becomes a CWH, it becomes completely Tushar Dash emphasised that there are
eviction of millions of people from their inviolate with no human activities allowed; many examples across India like Biligiri
homes, for the purpose of biodiversity pro- unlike the current practice where people Rangaswamy Temple (BRT) Tiger Reserve
are pushed out in name of conservation, and Simlipal Tiger Reserve where wildlife
and yet the protected areas are easily thrived after recognition of community
forest resource rights.

“But despite that, there is resistance
from the forest department to adopt it on
large scale. The worst part is that those for
whom forest laws are changed are never
consulted and in fact rights of people are
being rejected,” Dash said.

Trupti Parekh Mehta of a Gujarat-
based group, ARCH-Vahini, informed that
in Narmada district 20 villages secured
community forest rights (CFR).

“These villages secured community for-
est rights, including community forest
resource rights. They first focussed on the
harvesting of bamboo, as they had got
ownership rights on all minor forest pro-
duce and did a business of Rs 3.12 crores,
from which they paid Rs 1.62 crores to vil-
lagers as wages. These gram sabhas (village
councils) also prepared their management
plans with a view to managing, protecting
and regenerating forests of their CFR areas.
The gain from the bamboo sale had an elec-
trifying effect on the people of these as well
as neighbouring villages, who are encour-
aged to protect and regenerate more and
more bamboo and other MFPs. Such exam-
ples of realising economic benefits have a

Environment & people 20 December 2019

Khuzama village in Nagaland is a chanced upon a unique idea. “The thought Greater impact of Hydropower
little greener and more sustainable of installing a hydroger, a mini-hydro gen- The project, which would usually take
thanks to the efforts of its students erator, struck me. I shared the idea with the
who set up a mini hydropower plant. Union, and everyone agreed. That’s why we three weeks to complete, took two months
came up with Project Brighter Khuzama,” as KSCU had to wait for an influx of funds.
YOSHITA RAO he tells The Better India, adding how the “Project Brighter Khuzama is wholly fund-
students’ initiative assembled the plant ed by like-minded locals and not by any
Through the heart of Khuzama village and hydro-powered the village in two governmental organisations. We raised
in Kohima district, Nagaland, runs months. about Rs 85,000, and the total expenditure
the Asian Highway 2, which has came up to Rs 80,000,” informs Keseto.
street lamps that stand 7-foot tall. Its posts Wat-er Plan with Hydropower
are painted with the motifs of the Angami “The sole purpose of the project is not A local newspaper that covered this
tribe in colours of red, green, black, white, story stated that 90% of the population,
yellow and orange, among others. This was only to produce electricity and benefit from who are farmers, depend on the Mewoboke
done to represent the “rich Angami tribe it but to educate the students and the com- River as their main source of irrigation.
culture” that the village belongs to. munity about green energy,” says the 31-
year-old. Feeding two birds with one seed, “As most of the villagers depend on
“There are 16 clans of Nagaland, and Keseto adds, “To keep the machine running agriculture, we thought of installing the
each has a unique language. So, we don’t we now protect the forest, where our water first street light there. The second street
understand one another,” laughs Keseto source lies. And the students also learned light was installed at the village’s sub-
Thakro, a native of the village. But the the basic working principles of a hydroelec- health centre, that sees many late-night
lamps are a significant milestone for the tric power plant.” emergencies and deliveries,” Keseto says.
Khuzama village for more reasons than
one. Having worked as a technician for six Keseto goes on to share, “The
years with hydroelectric power plants, machine’s capacity is 3 kilowatts, but at
As the Coronavirus pandemic caused Keseto arranged for a run-down hydroger present, we are generating around 550
the world to go into lockdown, Keseto, who through his sources. In June, the KSCU watts, which is enough to light up 23 street
works as a technician in the mechanical acquired the machine, repaired it and lamps (7-foot tall), that light up the foot-
department of NIT Chumukedima, assembled it in roughly a day. path and eight street lights (20-foot tall)
returned to the village. Being a member of that covers around a 300-meter-stretch of
the Khuzama Students’ Care Union “In the beginning, we didn’t have any the highway.”
(KSCU), he began voluntarily teaching e- funds, so we thought of using the hydroger
learning classes, as the schools were closed. to power just one street lamp near an acci- A students’ collective
dent-prone area,” Keseto says. “The boys did most of the heavy lifting
While one class was underway, Keseto
Under Keseto’s supervision, the stu- and manual labour, but the ladies also
dents set up the plant under a bridge over helped a lot,” says Nophrenu Thapru, who
the Mewoboke River and installed a lamp completed her Master’s in English
on the bridge. The students recorded a Literature last year and now serves as the
video of the setup and posted it to general secretary in the KSCU.
WhatsApp groups, appealing for further
help. Funds began pouring in after that. (page on page no. 32)
(page no. 21 cont...)

December 2019 21 Environment & people

‘King Of Jackfruits’,
Ratnagiri Farmer

Grows 75 Varieties Of
Fruit On His Farm

In an effort to popularise the cultivation of the fruit in
Maharashtra, Desai has raised a nursery as well.

The village of Zapade, in Maharashtra, is home to a farmer who is
unique in a way — he has steered clear of growing Alphonso mangoes,
which are a favourite of every Konkan farmer. Instead, he has intro-
duced the cultivation of jackfruit. In all likelihood, Harishchandra Desai is
the only farmer in the state to have devoted 13 acres of his farmland —
located in Lanja taluka of Ratnagiri, to solely growing this otherwise
ignored fruit.

At 60, Desai looks towards a future when the phanas (the Marathi word
for jackfruit) will receive its dues for bringing prosperity to farmers in the
wettest region of the state. “Every year, a week before Vat Poornima in
June, traders arrive at the Konkan villages to pick jackfruits and pay a pal-
try of Rs 5 to Rs 10 per fruit,” says Desai, adding, “I want to change that.”

He believes that farmers can earn Rs 100 to Rs 200 per fruit, as they did
in Toobugere village in Karnataka after a jackfruit growers’ association was
formed there. This was the first and only such association in the country
with direct connectivity to the market.

Environment & people 22 December 2019

Zapade is located 4 km away from Beni, he practices drip irrigation on his across 13 acres and yield at different times
Lanja, and has a total population of 600. jackfruit orchard, which has lemon, ginger of the year. On the remaining 10 acres, he
Like most villages in Ratnagiri, the major and turmeric as intercrops. “I want to prove grows cashew. Interestingly, he was the
crops grown here are mango, coconut, that one can have a drip-irrigated jackfruit only farmer from Maharashtra to attend
cashew, nutmeg, jackfruit, betel nut, rice plantation. I adopted this method due to the 2017 International Jackfruit Festival
and ragi. In the villages of the Konkan non-availability of farm hands,” he says. held in Wayanad, Kerala. His passion for
region like Raigad, Ratnagiri and the fruit has earned him the title,
Sindhudurg, one is likely to find one or two ‘Phanasachi Raja’ “Phanasachi Raja (King of Jackfruit)” in
jackfruit trees at any household, scattered In an effort to popularise the cultiva- Maharashtra. He is ably supported in his
as a border crop for which farmers do noth- ‘jackfruit mission’ by his son, Mithilesh
ing except harvest the fruits. In fact, har- tion of the fruit in Maharashtra, Desai has (28), an Agri Engineer and a Civil Services
vesting is not done as a matter of routine started a nursery as well. During the lock- aspirant who has abandoned his dream to
and the fruits are often let to rot and fall. down owing to the pandemic, he sold become a farmer instead.
around 3,000 saplings to growers from
Jackfruit – The fruit of the future Sangli, Nashik, Pune, Panshet, Karad and According to Desai, a mature jackfruit
There are two kinds of jackfruit — the Satara, and has an additional
10,000 saplings awaiting sale. “I tree can produce some 200 fruits per year,
softer rassal, and the firmer kaapo. Tender educate the prospective grower with older trees bearing up to 500 fruits in
jackfruit is used to make phanasachi bhaji, on selecting a variety according a year. With hardly any labour costs, no fer-
while ripe ones are sold as fruits. Grown to one’s agro climate. What is tilizer and no pesticide, the fruit has the
mostly without any management practices, grown in Ratnagiri is not suit- potential to make farmers earn lakhs. “It’s
jackfruits are promising fruits grown able for a dry region, like Karad,” only during the harvest that you need addi-
organically by default. Researchers believe he says. tional hands,” says Desai, who has formed a
the fruit could be a replacement for wheat, Farmer Producers Company with 500 jack-
corn and other staple crops that are under Desai advises farmers to fruit farmers and prospective jackfruit
threat from climate change. According to limit the vertical growth of the growers.
Dr P Rajendran of Kerala Agriculture tree while encouraging its hori-
University, jackfruit trees are solar effi- zontal spread. His mantra is, (Source: thebetterindia.com)
cient, and in a five-year period, add 12 per “Don’t let it grow beyond 12 to
cent organic carbon to the soil, which is 15 ft. That will make it easy to
equivalent to 40 tonnes of carbon. pluck the fruit.”

Largely, due to its odour, the jackfruit He has close to 75 varieties
never gained popularity in the country, growing on his orchard and is
unlike in the far eastern nations. The fruit’s well-versed with details such as
botanical name, Artocarpus, is derived the place of its origin, preferred
from the Greek word artos (bread) and car- region for its planting, the
pos (fruit). It’s name comes from the month it bears fruit, its total
Portugese word jaca. Its origin is identified weight, colour of its fruit bulb
with the evergreen rainforests of Western and its weight when harvested.
Ghats, the fruit also grows in Tamil Nadu, He can rattle their fancy names
Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, too, like Super Early, Jalbhog
Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, Uttar Raja, Champadak, Singapoori,
Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Vietnam Seedless, J 33, Milky
Madhya Pradesh, and in the northeastern White, Madagascar Gomleos,
states. Ramchandra, Tubbogera, Kaudisingana
Kachahalli etc. A variety developed by him
The world’s largest fruit is called by a and named Desai Kappa, which he consid-
variety of names — Chakka (Malayalam); ers to be the sweetest, is very popular
Kathal (Hindi), Phanas (Marathi); Kathal, among growers in Kerala. He even guides
Gach Patha (akin to vegetarian meat) and the farmers on the fruit’s TSS (Total
Enchor (Bangla); and Halasu, Kujee and Soluble Solids), aka its sugar content. “I
Halasina Hannu (Kannada). Every region have trees with fruits that have TSS
of India has a unique way of preparing this between 15 to 30 per cent,” he says.
versatile fruit. It can be deep-fried or made
as dry or wet gravies, as well as into cutlets. A former employee of Ratnagiri’s
Of late, freeze-dried tender jackfruit flour District Hospital, Desai has collected vari-
has come as manna for diabetics. eties of the jackfruit from within the coun-
try and from countries like Thailand, Sri
Though Desai’s farm plot is located on a Lanka, Malaysia and Vietnam. His 1,250
hilly terrain close to the perennial river plus plants of different cultivars are spread

December 2019 23 Environment & people

Anuj Xess and services to combat the crisis, especially the sector, there is need for more action
in healthcare. and awareness to leverage these opportuni-
India’s decentralised renewable ties, the report said.
energy sector has become an enabler There is now a need for a conducive pol-
of economic growth, especially in icy environment, understanding needs of The federal Ministry of New and
rural areas, with a focus on liveli- the rural communities to create a market- Renewable Energy (MNRE) recently noti-
hoods and income generation place, perspectives of financing communi- fied a draft policy framework to promote
ties, available workforce opportunities and DRE for livelihoods. Additionally, the
At the start of 2020, the Indian decen- innovation in technologies, CLEAN said in Association of Renewable Energy Agencies
tralised renewable energy (DRE) sec- a new overview report — State of the of States (AREAS) invited proposals to pro-
tor, like others, was challenged by Decentralized Renewable Energy Sector in mote financial assistance for innovative
the impact of the unprecedented Covid-19 India 2019-20. solutions for rural livelihood applications.
pandemic. While DRE enterprises continue
to grapple with the situation, they have Despite the pandemic disruption, 62% Alongside, there are several other
also shown resilience. of DRE enterprises reported financial opportunities and avenues which can be
growth, a 17% increase from the previous created where DRE enterprises can con-
As the year nears its end, this resilience year, said the report published in collabora- tribute to promote clean energy applica-
bears hope for the sector as a whole, as well tion with Shakti Sustainable Energy tions. The convergence of the govern-
as for underserved populations that rely on Foundation. ment’s Agriculture Infrastructure Fund
these technologies. with the PM-KUSUM scheme and RBI’s
The report also showed that demand revised Priority Sector Lending Guidelines
In April this year, members of the non- for productive use appliances like solar for renewable energy are providing addi-
profit CLEAN network reported disruption pumps, cold storage, cooking as well as tional value to the sector.
in their DRE businesses due to the impact home solar has increased.
of Covid-19. In the months that followed, CLEAN surveyed member organisa-
many DRE enterprises innovated products Policy support tions as well as other key stakeholders in
Although government focus on improv- the sector and found high participation in
government programmes at state and
ing livelihoods has highlighted the value of

Environment & people 24 December 2019

national levels. Those who participated saw direct and indirect bene-
fits. Enterprises also reported that recognition from the government
helped raise capital.

Clean energy transition
The report found that enterprises, end users and financiers who

have been dealing with clean energy applications such as solar home
systems and lanterns, improved cookstoves and other such technolo-
gies, have transitioned towards a productive applications approach,
focused on income generation and livelihood opportunities for rural
communities.

A market survey conducted with enterprises showed the
prospects of various DRE applications and their scope to integrate
with other sectors like agriculture, food processing, textiles, cold stor-
ages and other energy-enabled sectors. This can lead to economic
resilience in rural areas.

As the space for DRE business is expanding, enterprises have
expressed the need to develop new partnerships with financing com-
munities, government departments, civil societies, across value
chains and relevant stakeholders, to build awareness and expand the
market.

While the pandemic put many enterprises on hold, it also allowed
some enterprises to look beyond their regular business activities and
expand to segments such as solar-powered Covid-19 medical waste
destroyers, solar touch-free automatic hand sanitisers, solarised vac-
cine carriers, solar-powered e-ambulances, solar-powered mobile
medical units and others.

Consumers have found the products to be useful as these tech-
nologies have become more reliable and cost-competitive over time.
That said, DRE enterprises have faced challenges to improve market
access due to lack of proper financing channels, consumer affordabil-
ity, consumer awareness about the products and their benefits, mar-
ket linkages and absence of a structured distribution channel.

For convergence, the financiers have expressed a need for strong
business plans where value and supply chain partners are identified
and have prospects for close engagements. Significant efforts need to
be made to increase awareness and strengthen market linkages and
distribution channels, while also involving non-energy stakeholder
communities such as agriculture, health, education, small businesses
and others.

Finance and end-user affordability were cited as key challenges by
68% of DRE enterprises, the report said.

Standardization of DRE applications
For DRE applications to penetrate into the market, standardisa-

tion of such applications is important in order to develop confidence
and acceptance among end users and investors, the report said.

The specifications of DRE productive applications are dependent
on the needs of the customer, their geography and operating pat-
terns. This requires enterprises to innovate and provide customised
solutions, highlighting the need for dedicated capacity and resources
for research and development for customised products and applica-
tions.

With the draft policy in place for the DRE sector and roles being
defined for different sector stakeholders, the CLEAN report said that
decentralised solutions would help build a sustainable business envi-
ronment in rural areas.

December 2019 25 Environment & people

Organic com-

posting offers

hope to deal with

stubble burning Pilot project

Scientists in Delhi have developed a smoke wafting from across the fields of IARI undertook demonstration trials of
cheap organic alternative to stubble neighbouring Haryana, Punjab and Uttar the fungal decomposer over 12,000
burning – one of the main culprits of Pradesh states as farmers burn rice stubble hectares in suburban Delhi and three
South Asia’s autumn air pollution to prepare for new planting in October and neighbouring states during the summer or
crisis. But will farmers be willing to November each year. This, combined with ‘kharif’ season that starts in June and ends
adopt it? colder temperatures, humidity and lack of in October. IARI has also sent capsules to
wind leads to pollution getting trapped farmers in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha,
Indian scientists have developed an during the autumn. Telangana and West Bengal. The institute
organic composting solution that farm- has licensed the technology to 10 compa-
ers can use as an alternative to burning IARI director Ashok Kumar Singh says nies for large-scale production.
crop stubble. Capsules containing various the “bio-decomposer” naturally degrades
fungi were developed by microbiologists at about 90% of the rice straw. After harvest- The pilot project has been declared a
the Indian Agricultural Research Institute ing the rice, farmers need to chop off the success. Delhi environment minister Gopal
(IARI) at Pusa in New Delhi. left-over straw into small pieces, spread Rai said, “the bio-decomposer experiment
them over the entire field, and spray the has shown that 90% of the stubble can be
The city bears the brunt of polluting solution on the straw. The fields are then converted into manure in about 20
irrigated and left for 25 days. days…the central government and the state
governments should also implement this
method.”

The bigger question is whether farmers
will embrace the new technology. The solu-
tion is cheap – four capsules cost USD 1.35

Environment & people 26 December 2019

and are enough to decompose rice straw According to India’s Ministry of New cellulose, said Bhuvaneshwari, who co-
over a one-hectare field. But it is still and Renewable Energy, the country gener- authored a paper on policy challenges in
unlikely the farmers will use the capsules ates about 500 million tonnes (Mt) of crop crop residue burning in India in the
unless they are distributed for free. IARI residues each year, mainly from cereals. International Journal of Environmental
plans to supply them along with rice seeds, Uttar Pradesh state produces the most at Research and Public Health in 2019. But
the IARI director says. A spokesperson for 60 Mt, followed by Punjab (51 Mt) and lignin, a harder substance present in stalks,
the department of environment in the Maharashtra (46 Mt). straw and husk, is much more difficult to
Delhi government said they are distribut- break down.
ing the capsules to farmers willing to try India’s National Policy on Management
them out, free of cost in suburban areas of Crop Residue says the problem of burn- Other alternatives such as composting,
such as Mundka, Najafgarh and Narela. ing crop residues has intensified in recent biofuels, use of stubble in the construction
years due to “the shortage of human industry such as brick making for rein-
Other alternatives labour, high cost of removing the crop forcement, need to be promoted, she said.
The new technique adds to other tech- residue from the field and mechanised har-
vesting of crops.” The real reasons behind the crop
niques currently used instead of burning residue burning are socioeconomic rather
crop residue. These include using rice straw The two northern states of Haryana than agricultural or waste management
to generate biofuel, biogas and compost; and Punjab, sites of India’s “Green issues, Bhuvaneshwari added. Solutions
and a tractor-mounted seeder that cuts and Revolution” that made India self-sufficient involving long-haul transportation, expen-
lifts the rice straw, drills seeds directly into in cereals production, alone burn around sive technology or high capital investment
the soil, and covers with the straw back as 35 million tonnes of biomass every year, are less likely to succeed with poor Indian
mulch. One reason earlier techniques were according to a report by The Energy and farmers. So, solutions that feed the nutri-
not adopted is straw and other crop residue Resources Institute
do not break down easily, and thus plowing (TERI), New Delhi. ents in the crop residue back into the soil
them back into the fields reduces produc- hold more potential.
tivity. This breakthrough would avoid this. “It is therefore
highly desired to The big problem with the IARI solution
More radical approaches have been pro- redress this issue in a is that the straw must be chopped into
posed. A 2019 report in the journal Science manner to convert small pieces before it can be turned into
says thousands of farmers in northern the biomass crop fertiliser. Mohan Singh, a farmer in Rohtak
India could increase their profits by adopt- residue into a superi- district of Haryana, said, “If I could pay the
ing ‘no-till’ farming, in which farmers leave or resource which can labour cost of chopping the straw, I could
the soil undisturbed, with crop residue cov- either be used as just as well pay to get it removed from my
ering the land. Such alternative farming energy alternative or farm altogether. It is good if the straw is
practices could also cut farmers’ green- for producing useful turned into compost, but the experts have
house gas emissions by as much as 78% and material with simul- to find a way to do it without asking us to
help lower air pollution in surrounding taneous reduction in get the straw chopped. We know all the
cities like New Delhi, the research shows. GHG (greenhouse problems caused by stubble burning. We
gas) emissions,” the still do it because all other methods cost
The study was led by a global team of TERI report says. too much.”
eminent agriculture and environmental sci-
entists from The Nature Conservancy, the Stubble burning (Source: thethirdpole.net)
International Maize and Wheat releases large amounts of polluting gases
Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide,
Indian Council of Agricultural Research nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide as well
(ICAR), the Borlaug Institute for South as soot. These pollutants can remain in the
Asia (BISA) and the University of atmosphere for an extended period of time
Minnesota. It concludes that directly seed- if lower temperatures do not permit their
ing wheat into unplowed soil and shredded quick dispersal.
rice residues was the best option — it rais-
es farmers’ profits through higher yields Partial solution
and savings in labour, fuel and machinery S Bhuvaneshwari, associate professor
costs.
at the department of civil engineering at
A burning problem the SRM Institute of Science and
The traditional farm practice of burn- Technology in Kancheepuram, Tamil Nadu,
said that biodegradation techniques such
ing crop residue continues to be one of the IARI’s decomposer offer only a partial solu-
major causes of air pollution in India, as tion to the problem of crop stubble man-
well contributing greenhouse gases to the agement.
air and worsening public health.
Biological degradation by bacteria
works with the softer components such as

December 2019 27 Environment & people

Two hundred years ago, on November some countries have gained greater bene- Fur sealing had a real boom-and-bust
17, Connecticut ship captain fits from the region than others. While quality. Once a region was picked over, the
Nathaniel Palmer spotted the mining is currently banned under the sealers would move to more fruitful
Antarctic continent, one of three parties to Antarctic Treaty and the days of sealing grounds. Before 1833, at least 7 million fur
do so in 1820. Unlike explorers Edward and whaling are over, Antarctica’s marine seals were killed in the Antarctic and sub-
Bransfield and Fabian von Bellingshausen, living resources are still being exploited to Antarctic. As early as 1829, British natural-
Palmer was a sealer who quickly saw eco- this day. ist James Eights lamented the loss of the
nomic opportunity in the rich sealing fur seal on the Antarctic peninsula: “This
grounds on the Antarctic Peninsula. Fur and blubber beautiful little animal was once most
Palmer was followed by a rush of other numerous here.”
In the two centuries since, Antarctica
has seen a range of commercial, scientific sealing ships, mostly from the US and Elephant seals were also hunted, but
and diplomatic developments. While some Britain, that methodically killed fur seals for their blubber, which could be converted
countries attempted to claim territory on along Antarctic beaches, swiftly taking into oil. It was not difficult for hunters to
the continent in the first half of the 20th populations to the brink of extinction. Seal drive them to the beaches, lance them
century, today the region is governed fur was used for clothing in the 18th and through the heart (or, later, shoot them in
through the international Antarctic Treaty 19th centuries in many parts of the world the skull), drain their blood and remove
System. and was an important part of US and their blubber. “We left the dead things, raw
European trade with China in the 19th cen- and meaty, lying on the beach,” according
Although the treaty claims to govern tury. to one sealer. The birds would pick the
Antarctica in the interests of all “mankind,”

Environment & people 28 December 2019

skeletons clean within days. thus make possible the orderly develop- whole ecosystem. Whales, seals, birds and
Sealing rapidly declined in the 1960s, ment of the whaling industry.” other fish rely on krill, making them essen-
tial to the Antarctic marine ecosystem.
owing to a mix of evolving cultural senti- But, again in the 1960s, public atti-
ments and changing availability of other tudes toward whales, like seals, began to While krill and toothfish are currently
materials, such as plastics, that could be change when environmentalists revealed both plentiful in the Antarctic, it is unclear
made into warm synthetic clothing and they were highly intelligent, sociable crea- how much the reduction of sea ice and the
petroleum-based lubricants. tures that sang in the ocean depths. Most changing migration patterns of predators
nations ceased whale hunting in the who feed on these species are affecting
The broadcast of footage showing Antarctic by the end of the 1960s – because their populations.
Canadian sealing in the early 1960s scan- of this consciousness and also because
dalised North American and European citi- there were inexpensive alternatives to Historically and currently, only a small
zens and prompted a quick shift in atti- whale products. number of people have profited from
tudes toward sealing. The Convention for Fishing Antarctica’s living resources, at the great
the Conservation of Antarctic Seals was expense of animal populations. Even if sus-
signed in 1972, regulating the large-scale Antarctica’s rich marine life continues tainable harvesting is possible now, climate
slaughter of seals for all nations in the change is rapidly undermining Antarctic’s
region. Today, the population of fur seals to be exploited today. Krill and toothfish
has rebounded, with a colony of over 5 mil- began to be fished in the 1970s. ecological stability.
lion on South Georgia alone, though num- While major environmental campaigns
bers have declined since 2000. Elephant Krill, a small shrimp-like crustacean, is
seals, too, have largely rebounded, with an used in nutritional supplements and pet try to raise awareness of Antarctica’s
estimated stable population of 650,000 foods. Norway, China, South Korea and fragility, most consumers of its products
since the mid-1990s. Chile are its biggest harvesters. Toothfish, likely do not even know their provenance.
which has been marketed as Chilean sea Whale and seal populations continue to
Blood-red water bass, is on menus worldwide. recover from past overexploitation, but the
The whaling grounds off Antarctica future impacts of current fishing practices
Since 1982, the Commission for the and climate change are uncertain.
were so rich they drew fleets from many Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living
nations. First came Norwegian and British Resources has managed these fisheries (Source: science.thewire.in)
companies, later to be joined by others with the overriding goal of maintaining the
from Germany, Russia, the Netherlands
and Japan. Whaling had occurred in the
Southern Ocean in the 19th century, but it
wasn’t until the first half of the 20th cen-
tury that whales were hunted to near
extinction there.

In the 19th century, whale oil was used
primarily for lamp fuel. But after 1910,
new uses were found for the oil, including
as industrial lubricants and edible fats.

Whaling became extremely lucrative
for a small group of companies, including
Unilever, whose early fortunes were built
from margarine made with whale oil.

At first, whales killed at sea had to be
brought to a shore station to be processed.
In 1925, an observer wrote, “What an
appalling stench it is…The water in which
the whales float, and on which we too are
riding, is blood red.” From the late 1920s
on, these shore stations were replaced by
pelagic whaling stations, where whales
were processed more efficiently on factory
ships at sea.

In 1946, some international efforts
were made to protect whales. The goal of
the International Whaling Commission
created that year was “to provide for the
proper conservation of whale stocks and

December 2019 29 Environment & people

Storms and floods new normal
in pandemic year

Natalie Taylor, Soumya Sarkar La Niña is a weather pattern that said, with India’s economic losses from the
occurs in the Pacific Ocean. It is the obverse disaster totalling about USD 14 billion.
People across South Asia and China of El Niño, the unusual warming of surface
paid a heavy price in 2020 as severe waters in the eastern equatorial Pacific It noted that this year’s monsoon in
cyclones, persistent heavy rain and Ocean that impacts trade winds and mon- South Asia was also remarkable. India had
floods set new records amid the Covid-19 soons in India and other parts of the world. one of its two wettest monsoon seasons
pandemic since 1994, and August was the wettest
“The average global temperature in month on record for Pakistan, with Karachi
Climate change and consequent 2020 is set to be about 1.2 degree Celsius reporting the highest amount of rainfall in
extreme weather events continued on their above the preindustrial (1850-1900) level,” a day.
destructive path in 2020 in a world grap- WMO secretary general Petteri Taalas said.
pling with the coronavirus pandemic, the “There is at least a one in five chance of it In China, the June and July were “par-
World Meteorological Organisation temporarily exceeding 1.5 degrees by ticularly wet”. The Yangtze river and its
(WMO) said in a report on Wednesday. 2024.” tributaries flooded, and the Three Gorges
Dam was forced to discharge water at its
Severe storms, heavy rainfall and The 2015 Paris climate pact aims to maximum capacity.
floods in South Asia and China in particu- keep global warming “well within” 2
lar displaced millions of people and caused degrees Celsius and pursue efforts to limit Year of extremes in South Asia
damages worth billions, the UN weather the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees. Globally, the number of tropical
agency said in its provisional State of the
Global Climate 2020 report. Not on track cyclones is above average this year, with 96
“This year is the fifth anniversary of as of November 17. Two more cyclones
The year 2020 is on track to be one of have hit Tamil Nadu since then.
the three warmest years on record as con- the Paris agreement on climate change,”
centrations of greenhouse gases continued Taalas pointed out. “We welcome all the Amphan displaced 2.4 million people in
to rise in the atmosphere despite reduced recent commitments by governments to India and 2.5 million in Bangladesh. The
human activity due to the Covid-19 lock- reduce greenhouse gas emissions because report noted that while many returned
down, the WMO said, basing its provision- we are currently not on track and more soon afterwards, “damage to more than 2.8
al assessment on temperature data from efforts are needed.” million homes likely resulted in homeless-
January to October. It will release the final ness and prolonged displacement for many
report in March 2021. The decade between 2011 and 2020 thousands”.
will be the warmest decade on record, with
“2020 is on track to be one of the three the warmest six years all being since 2015, In the wake of Amphan, monsoon rains
warmest years on record globally – even WMO said. led to massive flooding, dam collapses and
with the cooling effect of this year’s La landslides across South Asia. In India,
Niña,” UN secretary general Antonio The provisional report made a special nationally averaged rainfall for June to
Guterres said in his State of the Planet mention of Cyclone Amphan, which September was 9% above the long-term
speech at Columbia University in the US. brought destruction to West Bengal in average. In Nepal, flooding and landslides
“Humanity is waging war on nature. This is India and to Bangladesh in May. Amphan affected several districts in July.
suicidal.” was the “costliest tropical cyclone on record
for the North Indian Ocean,” the report Across India, Pakistan, Nepal,
Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Myanmar,

Environment & people 30 December 2019

more than 2,000 people died during the to warm up by more than 2 degrees on our approach to building. Our infrastruc-
monsoon season and millions were dis- average by the end of this century. ture must be climate-resilient,” Prakash
placed. Currently, more likely climate change sce- said. “The planning, implementing and
narios, specific for these river basins, sug- monitoring process must be climate-
The WMO report once again points to gest regional temperature increases resilient, and a systemic overhaul is neces-
the severe implications of climate change in between 3.5 and 6 degrees by 2100.” sary.”
India, according to climate scientist Anjal
Prakash, research director at Bharti Floods in China Guterres in his Columbia speech
Institute of Public Policy, Indian School of The WMO also identified floods and emphasised the scientific conclusions on
Business. climate change.
landslides in China as “particularly intense”
“India has the seventh-longest coast- this year. As of mid-July, it said, 29,000 “The science is crystal clear,” he said.
line in Asia. There are nine coastal states homes in the country were destroyed and “To limit temperature rise to 1.5 degrees
and two union territories in India, with a over 2.2. million people evacuated. Celsius above pre-industrial levels, the
population of about 560 million,” Prakash world needs to decrease fossil fuel produc-
said. “In 2014, around 177 million people During the rainy season, persistent tion by roughly six per cent every year
lived in coastal districts and 0.44 million high rainfall in the Yangtze River catch- between now and 2030.”
lived in island territories in India, which ment caused severe flooding. Reported eco-
are considered to be at a greater risk.” nomic losses exceeded USD 15 billion, and “The report has conveyed very convinc-
at least 279 people died, WMO said. ingly that we as humanity are heading
Disrupted natural systems towards doomsday. We have moved closer
The WMO report shows that oceans In response to a question about China’s to the dangerous limit of 1.5 degree and
commitment to be carbon-neutral before reversing climate change is almost impossi-
and cryosphere (the area of earth covered 2060, Taalas said, “I think that’s excellent ble with current resources,” said Sanjay
in ice) are an important and critical compo- news. China has good reason to have such Vashist, coordinator of Climate Action
nent of global ecology. They regulate global an ambitious goal, because it is also going Network South Asia. “Polluters need to
climate and weather. to suffer because of climate change.” move to renewable energy very quickly. It’s
now time to say goodbye to fossil fuels.”
The ocean is the primary source of rain He added that China, the world’s
and snowfall needed to sustain life on land, biggest emitter of carbon dioxide, has “In overcoming the pandemic, we can
and uptake of heat and carbon into the many cities and economic centres on its also avert climate cataclysm and restore
ocean has so far limited the magnitude of eastern coast – a low-lying area sensitive to our planet,” the UN chief said. “Making
human-caused warming on the Earth’s sur- sea level rise. peace with nature is the defining task of
face, explained Prakash, who is a lead the 21st century. It must be the top, top
author in the sixth assessment report of Taalas also stressed that “the melting of priority for everyone, everywhere.”
the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate the glaciers of the Himalayas is going to
Change. mean the release of less water, which will (Source: indiaclimatedialogue.net)
hit both India and China.”
Prakash stressed that the Hindu Kush
Himalayas region is “extremely susceptible Prepare and mitigate
to temperature increase.” “A pertinent question is what could be

“Under a 1.5 degrees Celsius global done? First and foremost, we must change
warming scenario, these areas are projected

December 2019 31 Environment & people

QuEocotes

We won’t have a society if we destroy the environment.

– Margaret Mead

Environment is no one’s property to destroy; it’s everyone’s

responsibility to protect. – Mohith Agadi

We don’t have to sacrifice a strong economy for a healthy environ-

ment.

– Dennis Weaver

A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs

of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our peo-

ple. ?

Franklin D. Roosevelt

What is the use of a house if you haven’t got a tolerable planet to

put it on?

Henry David Thoreau

Saving our planet, lifting people out of poverty, advancing eco-

nomic growth… these are one and the same fight. We must connect

the dots between climate change, water scarcity, energy shortages,

global health, food security and women’s empowerment. Solutions

“One of my friends came up with the idea to paint the lamp posts to one problem must be solutions for all.
in the traditional colours of the Angami tribe. She also painted a few
herself,” the 26-year-old adds. – Ban Ki-moon

As the work on the hydroger went on from dawn till dusk, If all mankind were to disappear, the world would regenerate back
Nophrenu says, “The other ladies and I prepared toast and tea for the
boys, along with Galho, a porridge-like dish of the Angamis that to the rich state of equilibrium that existed ten thousand years ago.
includes vegetables and rice.”
If insects were to vanish, the environment would collapse into
Elaborating on the students’ union, its educational and statistical
secretary, Sedi Thakro, says, “The union was founded in 1963, and 23 chaos.
members are elected for a tenure of two years.” He adds, “Like all other
unions, it is a village-level organisation that looks into the welfare of E. O. Wilson
the students. ‘Project Brighter Khuzama’ is also a first-of-its-kind ini-
tiative by a student body in our state.” What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflec-

The time and energy of these students that was poured into mak- tion of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another. ?
ing the Khuzama village a little more sustainable and brighter will
hopefully be appreciated by many more generations to come. Keseto Chris Maser
says, “Project Brighter Khuzama was a success because of the coopera-
tion and contribution of every single individual of the team.” Our planet’s alarm is going off, and it is time to wake up and take

(Source:thebetterindia.com) action!

Environment & people 32 December 2019 – Leonardo DiCaprio

Eco Facts Eco IQ

Human consumption of Earth's natural resources 1. Is the following statement true or false?
more than tripled between 1970 and 2015. Our The United States is a net exporter of most raw materials used by indus-
use of natural resources is expected to continue try today.
growing and more than double from 2015 to
2050. 2. Which one of the six most common building materials can be produced
with the least impact on the environment?
According to NASA, the world's rainforests will be Would it be: brick, concrete, aluminum, steel, wood or plastic?
gone by 2100 if the current rate of destruction
continues. 3. The area covered by forests in the United States today is approximately how
much of the land that was covered by forests in the 1600s?
If current patterns continue, we will have emp- About 20 percent, 50 percent, 70 percent or 100 percent.
tied the world’s oceans for seafood by 2050.
4. Is the following statement true or false?
The consumer society is thirsty. Very thirsty. Excluding Alaska, the United States has more forested area today than in
"There will be no water by 2040 if we keep doing 1920.
what we're doing today". (Professor Benjamin
Sovacool of Aarhus University, Denmark). 5. Which of the following three statements about United States forest pro-
duction is correct?
The world population is 215,000 people larger Annual forest harvest exceeds net growth of new wood.
today than it was yesterday. Annual forest harvest about equals net growth of new wood.
Annual forest harvest is less than the net growth of new wood.
If all life on Earth was put on a scale, the human
population would only make up about one ten- 6. What percentage, by weight, of the total amount of paper used in the
thousandth of the total weight of life on Earth. United States last year was recovered for reuse?
Would you say it was less than 10 percent, 20-30 percent, 40-50 percent
By 2100, the global urban population will pro- or 60-70 percent?
duce three times more waste than today
7. What percentage of the fiber used to produce U.S. paper last year came
27,000 trees are cut down each day so we can from recovered paper?
have Toilet Paper.
Would you say it was about 5 percent, 20 percent, 40 percent or 60 percent?
Aluminum can be recycled continuously, as in
forever. Recycling 1 aluminum can save enough December 2019 33 Environment & people
energy to run our TVs for at least 3 hours. 80 tril-
lion aluminum cans are used by humans every
year.

American companies alone use enough Paper to
encircle the Earth 3x! (It’s a good thing that busi-
nesses are moving towards going paperless)

We can save 75,000 trees if we recycled the
paper used on the daily run of the New York
Times alone.

When you throw plastic bags and other plastic
materials in the ocean, it kills as many as 1 mil-
lion sea creatures annually.

Reforestation

Environment & people 34 December 2019



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