The next war will not be over fuel, nor over religion,It will be over water.......drinking water

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http://thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=3 & theme= & usrsess=1 & id=265740

Nature serves notice~II ~ Future Wars Will Be Wars Over Water

Ashok Kapur

THERE is another drawback in many of the Western models of “development” that

are being followed by developing nations and relentlessly so by the

international aid agencies. This is the concept of technology-led growth. Of

course, it is the engine of growth, but all new technology needs to be evaluated

and its impact on mass employment examined carefully before it is adopted.

In Punjab, in the sixties and seventies, international aid agencies succeeded in

pushing giant harvester combines to ‘modernize’ agriculture. In a state where

there was already a growing surplus labour, this turned out to be disastrous.

Such technology may have been appropriate in a country like the USA where only

around five per cent of the population is engaged in agriculture. But to

transplant this technology in a developing country where seventy per cent of the

population is engaged in agriculture, could only have proved counter-productive.

Long before the modern technology-led models were the rage in the developed

world, Mahatma Gandhi had cautioned against aping Western technological and

economic models unquestioningly. Some critics had dubbed him as anti-modern and

his economic philosophy as outdated. More than half a century later, the First

International Commission on Environment and Development ~ the Bruntland

Commission ~ was to prove the Mahatma prophetic. It admitted that modern

technology has the power both to enhance and to degrade.

Technology & ecology

AS a leading Western expert has acknowledged: “Modern technology owes an apology

to ecology.” The current environmental crisis is too overwhelming to be tackled

by state action alone. All citizens are vital stakeholders in this venture ~ the

government, civil society, business and industry, women and children. All

sections of society must eco-educate themselves for effective implementation of

eco-friendly technologies and a simple lifestyle that limits man’s demands on an

increasingly fragile environment.

Gandhism is arguably the most ‘scientific’ development model that preaches a

sustainable lifestyle, a point missed by the Bruntland Commission when it spoke

of ‘sustainable growth.’ It overlooked the fact that in the long term,

‘sustainable development’ could only result from a sustainable lifestyle. The

two are inter-dependant. Gandhism stresses ‘experimential investment’ over

material acquisitions. In the Western economic models, man acquires possessions

today with tomorrow’s income. Gandhian economics teaches us to acquire

possessions tomorrow with today’s income. As a result, man is the proud

possessor of the goods. Under the Western model, the goods come to possess the

man.

That the Gandhian model is rooted in the traditional Vedic wisdom of India, is a

point that has been noted by Al Gore. The latter has acknowledged that unique

amongst civilizations, the Indian tradition teaches man to treat the natural

resources as a precious heritage. Take the case of water. Fresh water is treated

as sacred and not just another natural resource. The Ganga has been revered as

Mother Ganges from time immemorial. As per conventional wisdom, the sacred river

flows from the matted locks of Lord Shiva. In other words, fresh water is a

divine dispensation.

One major fallout of climate change is shrinking fresh water sources worldwide.

The UN environmental agencies have unanimously warned that ‘future wars will be

wars over water.’ The projected rate of the rise of temperature is 0.2 Celsius

every decade. As a consequence, more people will die of thirst than of hunger.

There is another glaring example of the way in which ‘modern’ technology

sometimes proves counter-productive. During the sixties and the seventies of the

last century, ‘taming’ of rivers through large dams was common in the West.

These were touted as near-permanent assets for development. Apart from

controlling floods, these would provide for power, fisheries and irrigation. We

have now realised that most of the large dams have proved to be mixed blessings.

Their disadvantages outlast their advantages. So much so that the Bruntland

Commission, which conducted a comprehensive study of the mega river dams,

concluded that ‘undamming’ existing large dams is a sign of progress, rather

than building new ones.

This ‘modern technology’ is in contrast to the traditional wisdom of India; to

dam free and flowing fresh water is to damn it, in a manner of speaking. In the

Vedic tradition, flowing water is referred to as ‘live’ and stored water is

referred to as ‘dead’. Modern irrigation experts tell us that it is only flowing

river water that is suitable for regular irrigation. Stored water reduces both

the fertility and productivity of land over time, by denying it micro-nutrients

that flowing water provides.

“Water wars” have already begun. None would know it better than we do in India.

It is another matter that Indian military experts have overlooked the strategic

implications of the issue altogether. They have instead been harping on the

political aspects. It is just as well that the looming threat of climate change

has refocused our attention.

Tibet’s glaciers

THE first ‘water war’ of the twentieth century was the Chinese occupation of

Tibet in the fifties. China has been chronically short of potable water. The

folklore of Tibet refers to their land as the ‘Third Pole’ or the ‘Water Tower’

of Asia. The Tibet plateau contains more than 45,000 glaciers, the largest ice

mass in the world, apart from the two uninhabited poles. It supplies fresh water

to four of the largest rivers of Asia. Tibet’s glaciers meet the water needs of

around fifty per cent of the world’s population in countries as far apart as

India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan , Vietnam and Cambodia, besides China.

In sum, the threat of climate change is the greatest challenge facing humankind

today. Conventional response to a very unconventional challenge may well spell

the doom of humankind. Although solutions, based on expertise, are certainly

required at the micro level, a macro level philosophy of a simple lifestyle will

alone provide a workable ‘model’ in the long run. A holistic concept that

incorporates essential Gandhian values is the crying need of the day. As Bacon

said: “There is only one way to command Nature, and that is to obey it.”

______

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Debasis speaks on Wildlife Smuggling to a group of 65 officers and

employees:Compassionate Crusaders Trust (CCT), a Calcutta NGO working on animal

rights and wildlife protection, was invited to an awareness workshop organised

by the chief commissioner of central excise and customs, Bhubaneswar, on the

‘Role of central excise & customs officers in the conservation of wildlife’.

-Central Excise Day (February 24),

Bhubaneswar , February 24,2003

It was unnecessary to speak about the laws, since the Customs and Excise people

knew them fully well. It was futile to repeat the impressive facts and figures

dwelt upon by Mr.Biswajit Mohanty of the Wildlife Society of Orissa. What people

need everywhere is motivation, and this is the theme chosen by Mr.Debasis

Chakrabarti in his hour-long speech.

He began quoting H.G.Wells (The Time Machine) who wrote that the world has

progressed from agriculture to paradox. The paradox is that although we have

made a substantial amount of progress in information and technology, we still

face the problems of insufficiency. This is the result of both uncontrolled

overpopulation, and uncontrolled greed. As Mahatma Gandhi put it, " There is

enough for every man’s need, but not for every man’s greed. "

 

Debasis spoke informally and extempore, to the 65+ group of officers and

employees, on a one to one basis. He pointed how greed was a very natural

component of human nature, and accepted that it is difficult to hold on to

values and suffer economically, especially when one sees others give in to

temptation and flourish. He suggested that if greed there be, let it be for the

luxury of knowing that one had the strength to resist a temptation which would

have done incalculable damage to future generations. In this day and age, job

satisfaction is a rare commodity, and at the end of the day, frustration and

guilt erase the elation of outward appearances. There are comparatively

innocuous items, and there are items which cannot be condoned by any allurement.

The damage to the ecology, caused by the illegal trade in wildlife, is

irreversible. The hype created by scientists lead the less informed to believe

that cloning is the answer to every problem. This fallacy compounds the dam

age to our environment, since people tend to take environmental issues more

lightly. Nature took ages to develop her own balance. Mankind has brought it to

a level where the fragile balance can be wrecked any time. A cloned tiger, for

instance, can never contribute to the ecology once the tigers created by nature

are extinct.

 

Debasis made a few down to earth suggestions. One of these was that posters be

put up at Airports, to alert uninformed couriers, and criminals, of the banned

items. Another was a mention, on the immigration/ disembarkation forms, that the

passenger is not carrying any of these contraband items. Yet another was to

release the poacher with a warning, provided he gives a lead to the next in the

chain of the traffickers.

 

Debasis also emphasized upon the need to avoid inter-departmental feuds, and the

urge to take credit. He lauded the Government for placing wildlife crimes under

the CBI, so that a centralized information bank could get inputs from all the

different agencies involved in the matter and also from the public who prefer to

avoid revealing themselves. The fact that – after Mrs. Indira Gandhi – Mr.Atal

Behari Bajpayi was the first Prime Minister of India to take up the issue

seriously was significant and encouraging. Since this subject was finally

receiving the importance it deserves, at the highest levels, it was obvious that

everyone in the department would also have to give it due importance. That being

the case, it was up to the individual. " I plead with you, with folded hands " he

pleaded emotionally, " think about the affect of your action. Think about your

grandchildren, and their children. Think about all the unborn future generations

which are – literally – dependent upon y

our choice, for their health and even existence. "

 

Debasis pointed out the need to stop thinking about state our national

boundaries, because the issue had a global effect, and the damage had to be

controlled at base; where the animals and birds lived, where they were caught

and killed; not just at the International borders after the damage was done. He

told them about the crisis in U.P.’s Rajaji Park, where flying insects were

destroying 7,00,000 sal trees. Tribals had to be employed to kill these insects

and save the forest area. This was the result of poaching of indigenous birds

who had eaten these insects and controlled their population. This was just one

example of some seemingly immaterial activity harmed us all.

 

" The next war will not be over fuel, nor over religion, " Debasis warned. " It

will be over water. Pure, drinking water, for which there is no substitute, and

which cannot be manufactured by all our advance in science and technology,

computerization or space exploration. It is time we place our feet solidly on

the ground and prepare to face the grim consequences, unless we are prepared to

sacrifice immediate, petty gain and comfort for long-term, essential benefits,

and survival itself, for the entire human race. "

 

THE TELEGRAPH

 

Thursday, February 27, 2003

 

NGOs called in to help save wildlife

 

SUBHRO SAHA

 

Can a cloned tiger contribute to ecology? How can thousands of sal trees be

saved from flying insects whose population has spun out of control, thanks to

rampant poaching of indigenous birds? How does one save the Olive Ridley and

Gangetic turtles? In a significant move to curb illegal trafficking in wildlife

and boost conservation efforts, the Central government has involved the

expertise of NGOs working in the field " for the first time " , and a city-based

activist body figures among those called to " share their experience " to bolster

the knowledge base. Compassionate Crusaders Trust (CCT), a Calcutta NGO working

on animal rights and wildlife protection, was invited to an awareness workshop

organised by the chief commissioner of central excise and customs, Bhubaneswar,

on the ‘Role of central excise & customs officers in the conservation of

wildlife’. Held in the Orissa capital on Central Excise Day (February 24), the

workshop was attended by more than 160 customs and centra

l excise officers. " It’s a significant leap forward to involve speciality groups

and this effort can only improve motivation levels, " said Debasis Chakraborti,

CCT founder, who did a presentation at the first-of-its-kind workshop. Biswajeet

Mohanty from Wild Life Society of Orissa was the other expert to speak at the

interface, inaugurated by chief commissioner of central excise & customs,

Bhubaneswar, Sujoy Roy. " This is not a mere endeavour to pursue love for

animals, but an effort to preserve our own natural resources, " Roy told the

participants. Dwelling on the menace of illegal traffic in wildlife products, he

stressed on the need to " control the damage at the base " , where the animals and

birds are captured and killed, " and not just at international borders " . CCT,

which received the Venu Menon Award last year for its work in curtailing

cattle-smuggling across the Bangladesh border, expressed concern at the

increasing traffic of Gangetic turtles into Bangladesh through th

e state’s " porous " borders. " The turtles, sold clandestinely in markets across

West Bengal, constitute only about five per cent of the total catch. The rest

are smuggled into Bangladesh, where it’s not a protected species and consumption

of its meat is legal, " said Chakraborti. The CCT suggested that posters be put

up at airports to alert uninformed couriers of banned items, or a mention made

on the immigration/disembarkation forms that the passenger is not carrying

contraband stuff. The NGO lauded the Centre for placing wildlife crimes under

the CBI, so that a centralised information bank could get inputs from all the

agencies involved, and also from the public, protecting their identity.

 

 

 

 

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Thank you for your compassion !

With best regards,

Debasis Chakrabarti

Compassionate Crusaders Trust

http://www.animalcrusaders.org