Prof Nutan K Resutra
Dear friends; you have always given me encouragement by going through my write ups- whatever they might be! Today, I am not going to talk about any political issue, but am going to wish us all: Suicide Mubarak.
You might be thinking we have heard people say Eid Mubarak, Diwali Mubarak, Lohri Mubarak; but what non-sense does he mean by saying Suicide Mubarak? Who on earth wishes Suicide Mubarak? Well, this is the harsh realty which we all seem to be totally oblivion of, as of today.
I was perplexed, and I was sad too. This is perhaps for the first time in my life that I have not seen and felt winters. My heavy leather jackets have bowed their shoulders in disappointment and my coats, warmers, suits and high-necks have become shrunk with their lost- hope- eyes not seeing any cold. I was too eager to sit in warm sun, shawl- draped, sipping hot tea, enjoying already known news reading from the newspapers. But alas! I missed it. And not only me, all felt the same thing; climate turning topsy-turvy throughout the world. Reason? Global warming.
Yes friends, we have been encountering strange phenomenon. Europe is faced with water scarcity; Doomsday stones in rivers have started showing up with explicit warnings inscribed on them; Skying had to be cancelled in Switzerland because there was no snowfall on otherwise snow- clad mountains; fierce wild fires not only in the US but also many other places on the globe; Drought in the United Kingdom; sea creatures generally found in much ocean depths have suddenly started floating on the surface; days hotter, nights colder; and especially in India, Gomukh or the starting point of the Holy Ganga has reduced to alarming size; to name just a few.
Why so? The Science- Pandits conveniently utter the much -used phrase: global warming. The destruction to environment which could not happen in thousands of years, happened in just two centuries; thanks to modernisation and development. Concrete jungles have replaced natural vegetation. Brazil has borne the brunt of greed of her politicians where deforestation has taken place at alarming rate. The developed countries have contributed generously in an increase in carbon emission. Glaciers at the Poles are shrinking, melting fast and the sealevel is rising. What seemed to me a distant never- to happen-apprehension of mighty rise of sea levels, has suddenly seems to become a horror realty.
When I was a young boy, I had read in science periodicals that by 2050, the coastal cities may be submerged because of melting of ice from the North Pole and increase in sea-level. And I pooh-poohed it thinking this just cannot happen; at least not in the life span of mine and my kids. But this imaginary thought is fast becoming a deadly realty and human race is facing its biggest survival challenge. The frequency of floods, droughts, cloud bursts has become too common now. Just look at the destruction caused in Himachal in last few years.
Yes, this is happening and the idea of Praley is staring right at us!
Now the question that most of us are trying to avoid is: what to do? And the answer is: fight.
However grim the situation has taken turn; we can still turn tables if we act with sincerity and determination. On government level- to quote just one example- it is now the time for Uttrakhand Government to seriously put a check on commercial tourism of especially Gomukh and other fast- shrinking glacier areas; lest we lose the Ganga Mata itself when it vanishes from the face of the earth. Same is called for by Himachal Government as well. This is where sincerity is needed on the part of governments.
Every individual is a one single person, but each one can contribute to avert the now seeming an out- of- control situation. The first step is to start; start with earnest will to save mother nature. And this does not require mammoth acts. At micro level, each one of us can plant at least one tree, to start with. And there are countless instances where people have really done so, ultimately leading to converting desert into oasis. I can quote the case of Padma Shree Sham Sundar Paliwal; a Sarpanch from Piplantri Village in Rajasthan, who became a national environment hero by starting the mission of planting trees on the birth of each girl child in his Panchayat. He is also known as the Father of Eco-Faminism. Then there is Padma Shree Chwang Norphel from Ladakh; lovingly called the Glacier Man of India, who has contributed by making artificial glaciers. Just recently, an event on the artificial glaciers was held in a village in Ladakh with intent to aware people of the importance of glaciers. I had the opportunity of interacting with both these personalities when they attended the International Seminar on Water conservation that was held at the Degree College Udhampur while I was posted there as the Principal of that prestigious college. These are just two cases where determination of an individual has changed the geography, flora, fauna and climate of a particular area. So, it is not right to think that one individual cannot do anything. I am recalled of a couplet by Dushyant Kumar where he says:
Kaun kehta hai ke asmaan mein suraakh ho nahin sakta;
Ek patthar to tabiyat se uchhalo yaaro !
I feel, everything is not yet lost!