Pithoragarh (Uttarakhand), Apr 6 (ANI): The entire Himalayan region is in the throes of a transformation, ostensibly towards 'development'. "Development towards what and for whom?" is the moot question, in the present scenario when the pristine environment and the harmony that characterized the way of life of its people is being destroyed.
What really is happening in the region, which lies around the Himalayas, awe-inspiring not only for its majesty but its unique and delicate eco-systems? Is this vast resource, reflecting centuries of harmony between nature and human habitation under threat? Is the region's immense value being quietly undermined and destroyed under the garb of 'development'? Powerful interest groups like the hotel and mining industries are buying land from people. People are getting alienated from their environment, from resources like water, forest and land on which they have the first right.
The Himalayan region is fragile. It is the repository of natural resources, which have sustained human habitation over centuries. The intrinsic value and strength of the region is now being viewed as booty and plundered in the name of development.
In Uttarakhand large dams like the Tehri have been the bane of the region. There are countless lesser-known projects which have uprooted people from their land, causing havoc to the environment. Key questions like displacement and rehabilitation are not being addressed.
The question that arises is that of accountability. Who does the governments in the Himalayan states answer to? Whose interests are they protecting? Here it would be wise to step back and look at the region as a whole, not necessarily as individual states each with its own political dispensation and polices in place. Several states in the Himalayan region would have common concerns.
The region is the source of about 20 rivers. It has huge water reserves and glaciers and massive forests, home to vast bio-diversity. It would be essential to go beyond political boundaries to come together as a regional entity.
This necessarily would mean either the initiative comes from within or else without which means from the Central Government. But this is not happening, nor is there any impetus from any of the stakeholders. Instead policies are being formulated and implemented with insensitivity across states. Perhaps even for academic interest, if we were to look at the region, what we find is a weak representation of the Himalayan region in the Parliament.
The numbers are clearly skewed in terms of representation at the highest legislative body in the country. Small wonder then, issues which are indeed common are unaddressed even by the individual state MP's, much less a coming together of the representatives of the region as a whole.
There are 11 Himalayan states, with a population of 63, 662, 309, across an area of 592971 sq km. There are 40 representatives in the Parliament from 11 Himalayan states. Arunachal Pradesh has two representatives in the Parliament; Assam 14; Himachal Pradesh 4; J andK 8' Nagaland 1; Manipur 2, Meghalaya 2; Mizoram 1, Sikkim 1, Tripura 2, and Uttarakhand has 5.
Probably, there is also lack of cohesiveness to advocate for a more enlightened and forward-looking policy on the region.
Atul Sharma, whose poetry speaks of the struggle for 'Jal Jangal Jameen' says "In such development, villages are becoming empty. We are losing everything local, our means of self-employment, our rural wisdom, local seeds and the village culture. "
According to Sundarlal Bahuguna, who for decades has been the voice of the region's environmental concerns believes that it is imperative that peoples' needs inform and create policy.
What is happening now is that it is government that formulates policy disconnected to the needs on the ground. Dr. Anil Joshi based in Chamoli district who heads an organization HESCO has for years worked on issues of livelihood particularly focusing on women, rues: " There is no Report that showcases the changes happening in the Himalayas over the last 100 years. What have we achieved; what have we lost, what is the status of human resources; there is no clear picture." Joshi says, "Himalayan policy will only be meaningful when the Himalayan governments will address the destruction that is taking place in the name of development."
These are the genuine voices from the ground. What they are essentially saying is that yes development is required but in a way that is people-friendly, one that does not alienate its own from the land and resources they have inherited, managed and conserved for themselves and for posterity.
In more tangible terms, this would translate into smaller projects like construction of small dams, which do not displace thousands, which are in sync with the environment.
The Charkha Development Network feels that there will be countless other ways, which could lead to development sans destruction. It will take the governments across the Himalayan region and at the Centre, sagacity to put them into action. By Dinesh Pant (ANI)
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