<p>Getting the Unesco heritage tag for the Western Ghats is a significant accomplishment for the Ministry of Environment and Forests. But the Ministry could have done more. It failed to incorporate in its nomination dossier repeated requests from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) - a recommendatory body to the World Heritage Committee of Unesco - to integrate the recommendations of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) report, one of which is regarding the management of the Ghats once the Unesco tag is accorded. It is actually accused of concealing the panel’s report from public scrutiny for nine long months.<br /><br />It took the intervention of the Central Information Commission to finally host the report on its website. Following this, there has been public debates, especially with the Kerala and Maharashtra governments openly expressing strong reservations over the panel’s recommendations. Ashwini Y S speaks with Prof Madhav Gadgil regarding the controversies surrounding his panel’s report:<br /><br />The MoEF, despite constituting the WGEEP and setting a specific mandate for it, chose not to put up its report for public scrutiny for a long time. Why do you think that MoEF did that? <br /><br />I wouldn’t want to speculate on the intention behind MoEF’s conduct. But certainly it was very surprising to me that the report was kept under wraps, despite the panel being given the impression that the whole process was transparent. Many consultations were held with MoEF officials right till the end. Consultations were also held with the then minister Jairam Ramesh and the content of the report, as developed, was known. The panel ensured that all suggestions given by the MoEF were incorporated in the report. As a person who has an interest in the environment and in the democratic processes and values, I felt that it was improper for the Centre to treat the report in such a manner. Concerted efforts were made to keep the report away from public scrutiny. It was wrong. <br /><br />Your report has been dubbed as “impractical”, “draconian”, “erroneous” and “rigid”. Your comments?<br /><br />The recommendations are clearly being misinterpreted and lies are being told. The very people who attempted to keep the report suppressed are now employing methods to project distorted versions of the report without even reading it. The recommendations are being presented as “conservation by imposition”. This is a completely incorrect view. The panel has neither prescribed rigid boundaries for the Western Ghats nor has it set inflexible restrictive prescriptions. In fact, it sought to provide a basis for informed discussion involving the various levels of governance, including the gram sabhas/ward sabhas. I feel that there should be devolution of powers to local bodies to ensure that all levels of the government are properly involved in taking decisions on environmental issues.<br /><br />Practical questions about shifting of Vattiyoorkavu, a residential area in Kerala, for instance, are being raised. How realistic are the recommendations of your panel?<br /><br />The panel has not recommended any restrictions to be imposed on towns and cities. The real issue here is the way environment has to be managed. Any kind of development should be environment-friendly and people-oriented. The concept of Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) is result of initiatives by the civil society in India. Mahabaleshwar, for instance, is a major town, and it was declared as an ESA 12 years ago. <br /><br />Declaration of towns or cities as ESAs has been in practice for the last 20 years. The recognition, however, needs to be put in practice or effectively implemented and should not be violated or used as a tool for corruption and bad governance.<br /><br /> Are existing laws/enactments insufficient? Have the State and the Central governments implemented the existing laws effectively?<br /><br />There are many good laws in place, like the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 and the Forest Rights Act. But they are not implemented. There should be proper environment governance. We shouldn’t impose either development or conservation priorities on people. We should instead engage them in the decision making processes.<br /><br />Do you think your report will be accepted and implemented by the Centre?<br /><br />I am quite happy with the way the report has evoked public interest. People are now thinking about these environmental issues. I don’t expect the government to immediately implement it, but I hope public pressure will mount over time, and the government will hopefully implement it.<br /><br />What is the role of politicians and bureaucrats when it comes to protecting the environment?<br /><br />They should stop imposing their priorities and allow democratic processes to decide. That will ensure good governance. <br /><br />Gadgil speaks<br /><br />“The Unesco Heritage tag will only protect the already protected areas and hence has limited symbolic significance. The Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel certainly does not want merely to protect some oasis of biodiversity in a desert of ecological devastation. However, I welcome the Unesco tag, as it means that the government has emphatically called for protecting the natural heritage of Western Ghats. <br /><br />I hope that the government will now initiate concrete, comprehensive action on the ground to meaningfully achieve this. Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) provides a road-map for such action.” <br /><br /><br />Related Stories <br /><br /><a href="../content/262638/preserve-lifeline.html">Preserve lifeline</a><br /><a href="../content/262640/older-himalayas-rich-biodiversity.html">Older than the Himalayas, rich in biodiversity</a><br /> </p>
<p>Getting the Unesco heritage tag for the Western Ghats is a significant accomplishment for the Ministry of Environment and Forests. But the Ministry could have done more. It failed to incorporate in its nomination dossier repeated requests from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) - a recommendatory body to the World Heritage Committee of Unesco - to integrate the recommendations of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) report, one of which is regarding the management of the Ghats once the Unesco tag is accorded. It is actually accused of concealing the panel’s report from public scrutiny for nine long months.<br /><br />It took the intervention of the Central Information Commission to finally host the report on its website. Following this, there has been public debates, especially with the Kerala and Maharashtra governments openly expressing strong reservations over the panel’s recommendations. Ashwini Y S speaks with Prof Madhav Gadgil regarding the controversies surrounding his panel’s report:<br /><br />The MoEF, despite constituting the WGEEP and setting a specific mandate for it, chose not to put up its report for public scrutiny for a long time. Why do you think that MoEF did that? <br /><br />I wouldn’t want to speculate on the intention behind MoEF’s conduct. But certainly it was very surprising to me that the report was kept under wraps, despite the panel being given the impression that the whole process was transparent. Many consultations were held with MoEF officials right till the end. Consultations were also held with the then minister Jairam Ramesh and the content of the report, as developed, was known. The panel ensured that all suggestions given by the MoEF were incorporated in the report. As a person who has an interest in the environment and in the democratic processes and values, I felt that it was improper for the Centre to treat the report in such a manner. Concerted efforts were made to keep the report away from public scrutiny. It was wrong. <br /><br />Your report has been dubbed as “impractical”, “draconian”, “erroneous” and “rigid”. Your comments?<br /><br />The recommendations are clearly being misinterpreted and lies are being told. The very people who attempted to keep the report suppressed are now employing methods to project distorted versions of the report without even reading it. The recommendations are being presented as “conservation by imposition”. This is a completely incorrect view. The panel has neither prescribed rigid boundaries for the Western Ghats nor has it set inflexible restrictive prescriptions. In fact, it sought to provide a basis for informed discussion involving the various levels of governance, including the gram sabhas/ward sabhas. I feel that there should be devolution of powers to local bodies to ensure that all levels of the government are properly involved in taking decisions on environmental issues.<br /><br />Practical questions about shifting of Vattiyoorkavu, a residential area in Kerala, for instance, are being raised. How realistic are the recommendations of your panel?<br /><br />The panel has not recommended any restrictions to be imposed on towns and cities. The real issue here is the way environment has to be managed. Any kind of development should be environment-friendly and people-oriented. The concept of Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA) is result of initiatives by the civil society in India. Mahabaleshwar, for instance, is a major town, and it was declared as an ESA 12 years ago. <br /><br />Declaration of towns or cities as ESAs has been in practice for the last 20 years. The recognition, however, needs to be put in practice or effectively implemented and should not be violated or used as a tool for corruption and bad governance.<br /><br /> Are existing laws/enactments insufficient? Have the State and the Central governments implemented the existing laws effectively?<br /><br />There are many good laws in place, like the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 and the Forest Rights Act. But they are not implemented. There should be proper environment governance. We shouldn’t impose either development or conservation priorities on people. We should instead engage them in the decision making processes.<br /><br />Do you think your report will be accepted and implemented by the Centre?<br /><br />I am quite happy with the way the report has evoked public interest. People are now thinking about these environmental issues. I don’t expect the government to immediately implement it, but I hope public pressure will mount over time, and the government will hopefully implement it.<br /><br />What is the role of politicians and bureaucrats when it comes to protecting the environment?<br /><br />They should stop imposing their priorities and allow democratic processes to decide. That will ensure good governance. <br /><br />Gadgil speaks<br /><br />“The Unesco Heritage tag will only protect the already protected areas and hence has limited symbolic significance. The Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel certainly does not want merely to protect some oasis of biodiversity in a desert of ecological devastation. However, I welcome the Unesco tag, as it means that the government has emphatically called for protecting the natural heritage of Western Ghats. <br /><br />I hope that the government will now initiate concrete, comprehensive action on the ground to meaningfully achieve this. Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) provides a road-map for such action.” <br /><br /><br />Related Stories <br /><br /><a href="../content/262638/preserve-lifeline.html">Preserve lifeline</a><br /><a href="../content/262640/older-himalayas-rich-biodiversity.html">Older than the Himalayas, rich in biodiversity</a><br /> </p>
