Unnatural progress

Forty years after the Chipko Movement became symbolic of several conservation struggles, the message sent out by the women to fellow human beings have been conveniently forgotten by future generations, feels Atula Gupta.

It was on March 26, 1974, when a group of peasant women in Reni village of Chamoli district of Uttarakhand stood surrounding their beloved trees. They were trying to save them from being chopped down by contractors deployed by the forest department. Their message was simple, cut us, before you cut the trees. Known to the world as the Chipko Movement it is tragic today to learn that the same place that gave birth to one of the first known conservation battles in the history of the world, is facing one of the biggest natural disasters of modern times. What is even more tragic is the revelation that this present day destruction was exactly the outcome of not heeding to the lessons those women had tried to teach years ago.

On June 16 and 17, 2013 Uttarakhand was pounded by landslides and torrential rains. What followed is a gory story of wreckage that took with itself thousands of lives, and left many more with a future without a home, livelihood, savings or even an identity. In the aftermath of this tragic Himalayan tsunami as people stagger to build their dilapidated lives once again, all experts are of the same opinion – the nightmare did begin with a cloudburst but the damage it unleashed was not entirely nature-made. Chopped trees, rampant construction, deliberate attempt to change the course of the mountain rivers so that roads, power plants and dams could be built, escalated the vulnerability of the state to such an extent that its fall like a pack of cards was predestined.

Ecological sins

Forty years ago when the Chipko Movement gathered momentum in Uttarakhand and later became symbolic of many conservation movements, the women who stood for the forests had one message to send across to every individual. They said that the real gifts of the forests were soil, water and pure air, not timbre, resin and revenue. Sadly though, the tree huggers’ message was forgotten by their very future generations, more so when Uttarakhand became an official Indian state in November of 2000.

In the decade that followed, Uttarakhand’s development priorities have changed. The fact is visible in the hundreds of data available related to the state’s diminishing natural resources and untamed urban growth. Between 2001 and 2011 Uttarakhand lost 4,856 square kilometres of its forest cover as per the national census.

Interestingly, the habituated areas have increased by 30 square kilometres. The state has seen a 1,000 per cent increase in vehicular traffic in the last eight years with expansion of roads leading to the inevitable everyday – more chances of landslides.
Around 70 hydel projects are proposed on the two main tributaries of the Ganga – Alaknanda and Mandakini – that meet at Rudraprayag, the epicentre of the devastation. Two 20-kilometre tunnels are being built to divert these rivers for hydel projects and constant blasting of the river banks has affected the local ecology.

The biggest stressor of all is the infrastructure and real estate development, triggered by the cash flow from tourism. The number of tourists visiting Uttarakhand since 2000 has increased by 155 per cent, according to data with the Uttarakhand tourism department. The annual number of tourists visiting the state now is 28 million; the state’s population is half this number.

In 2012 the Centre declared the 100-kilometre stretch along the Bhagirathi river from Gangotri to Uttarkashi an “Eco Sensitive Zone” which meant no development was permitted there. But this eco-zone was strongly opposed by the government in the name of development and providing infrastructure to the people living in the area.
Needless to say, the shortage of dwelling for the tourists was fulfilled by building illegal structures too near to the river. The floods came and turnedthem into rubble in a matter of minutes.

Studies by the Pune-based Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology have shown that the fury of flash floods over the north-west Himalayan region in the last 20 years has increased and a probable reason is global warming. Vinod Tare, senior faculty at IIT, Kanpur and an expert on the Himalayan ecosystem, says when trees are removed, rocks blasted and unscientific anthropogenic pressure is exerted nature plays havoc.
Terence Mckenna once said, nature is not mute- it is man who is deaf. The Uttarakhand tragedy has proven that in this “State of the Gods”, the one who needs to worshipped the most is Mother Nature.

to know the ecological impact of mining in the Doon Valley showed that the limestone left in the mountains contributed more to the economy than its extraction through mining, because limestone is an aquifer and holds water in its cavities and caves.
She says logging was strictly banned in the 80s after it was seen that the Ganga catchment area could never survive floods without the strong root system holding the steep mountains together.

Terence Mckenna once said, nature is not mute- it is man who is deaf. The Uttarakhand tragedy has proven that in this “State of the Gods” as it is known, the one who needs to worshipped the most is Mother Nature.