Over the last few decades the sprawling lakes in Kashmir have been ravaged and turned into waste dumping sites. According to Center for Science and Environment (CSE), New Delhi, over the last century, 50 percent of lakes, ponds and wetlands of Srinagar have been encroached upon. Even if we are not yet an Industrialized State, the water systems are in alarming and thus dangerous levels of pollution.
Even on environment day celebration itself, tons of garbage of polythene are being added to the Himalayan height/size heaps of garbage already facing the element of ignorance .
It is still right time to begin with right now: let us save 5 buckets of clean water , remove 5 waste materials from our surroundings, think 5 times before cutting down a tree , plant 5 more trees, put off unnecessary lights for 5 minutes each, avoid temptation to drive personal cars for 5 hours, avoid use of polythene for 5 decades (because that will do a great favour to the environment incase one is determined to avoid polythene almost throughout his life) and do realise the change and be careful as it is not Barrack Obama’s so called Change, which is leading the world from bad to worse. Environmental degradation is reflected in every part of the world. Developed nations have always axed the wellbeing of environment (for their own ‘benefits’) thus making it upset.
Over the past few years , the concentration of carbon dioxide (which has a 50% contribution towards causing global warming) has increased in the atmosphere by many fold. The nuisance of global warming which is the biggest environmental challenge of the 21st Century, the need of the hour is to find some way out for curbing the factors which contribute towards global warming. The immediate threats of global warming are waiting for the new generations with their dreadful effects. The Inter Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) envisages an increase in average global temperature in the years to come.People are already aware of the severe and long term consequences of Global Warming. Besides, the nations of the world need to explore the strategies for handling the most dreadful stuff (Nuclear Waste) for the wellbeing of planet earth. Though the nuclear waste is dumped into the oceans and under the soil, yet it can persist for a long time since the half life of some radioactive materials is of the order of years and centuries. The nuclear race has made the world to be at the climax of destruction. In this race who wins who loses , that does not matter, but overall the resources are forced to shrink. We should switch to alternative sources of energy (preferably renewable ones) in order to meet our energy requirements.It will serve as a dual purpose, viz., to minimize air pollution and prevention of our natural resources from exploitation. Given the willingness of statesmen and political leadership, green and eco friendly technology can certainly replace the prevailing pollution technology.
Down the gradient from Copenhagen Summit Failure to the unsuccessful attempts made by Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) to maintain the glory of Srinagar city, the Global Warming nuisance to the inefficiency of LAWDA to protect world famous Dal and other Lakes from unchecked pollution.. Road widening is going on but at the same time roadside encroachments are running parallel, irrespective of being under green belt or normal belt. Srinagar , the city which was glamoured by the Mughals, is not the fourth dirtiest instead so called civilized people are living in one of the dirtiest cities of India (If we believe Urban Development Ministry’s survey report). Chinars are being chopped keeping the judicial/legal jurisprudence at bay. Dal Lake is not only polluted but maligned. The number of vehicles (discharging tons of automobile exhaust per day) is perhaps going to outnumber the number of individuals in this once beautiful corner of the world, courtesy: soft loan schemes of Banks to meet the target of providing pollution sources (automobiles) to every customer. No body is bothered about sustainable development.
We should maximize our efforts in order to regain the status of our valley of being called the Switzerland of Asia. Again at the global level, maintaining essence of celebrating the day, developed and developing nations must cut their carbon emissions practically also (besides cutting it though various pacts merely on white papers!) and switch to renewable sources of energy. Usage of sophisticated technology in industries can reduce carbon emissions to a great extent. Extensive plantation drives may also serve one of the natural carbon sequestration method.
Let’s pledge today that we the people of this state, who for centuries have lived in harmony with nature, will continue to do so. This state is ecologically very fragile and is vulnerable to environmental degradation. On the occasion of world environment week we carry forward our efforts to conserve the environmental resources of our state.
