"What gets my gall the most is that the
subject of poverty and environment is not even on anyone’s agenda. Again, who is to
blame? Guess for yourself. Issues in which the economic interests of
industrialised countries coincide with their ecological interests are acceptable in the
UN; the rest is usually a sham. But who is to blame? Democratically elected leaders of
Western democracies? It is the governments and diplomats of developing countries who
should be squarely blamed — like the pompous ambassadors of our Foreign ministry, who
never come forward with their own agenda for global environmental negotiations. Third
World environment ministry officials are even worse, because they see lucrative job
opportunities for themselves in these new global environmental agencies; and slowly but
steadily, they cave in to everything."Editor’s page, Down
To Earth, July 31, 1996
"Will the US government care much if an Indian, Bangladeshi or a
Maldivean were to drown because of rising sea levels?" But if there existed
a framework of global democracy, a Bangladeshi would have the right to stop US citizens
enjoying Mother Earth to a point that would threaten the very existence of his or her
country. All environmental talk of only one Earth remains deeply hollow until such a
democratic right is recognised and made legally enforceable."
Editor’s page, Down To Earth, October 15, 1996
"Participation is a lovely word. For long it has been twisted around to
mean anything according to the whims and fancies of the user of the word. The GEF
ecodevelopment project could have provided the much needed space for institutional
innovations that are desperately needed for people’s participation. But the project
leaves all management decisions to bureaucracy, while people’s participation is left
more or less in the same mould as ‘I speak, you listen’."
Editor’s page, Down To Earth, October 31, 1996
"Among a host of environmental misdemeanours — crimes, really —
the dramatic rise in air pollution in most Indian metropolises over the last one decade is
a direct result of an inefficient state, both on terms of balancing responsibilities and
precautionary actions. It is nothing short of a slow murder! Even as an
environmentalist, I was not aware of all the contours of this highly technical problem of
vehicular pollution. But this tailpipery struck me as a little imbecilic; as if only
vehicle maintenance was at the heart of the problem.
It has become clear to me that tailpipe checking is clearcut harassment of the citizen
by the state in the name of environment. What is also clear is that vehicular pollution is
a created problem, not a ‘natural’ one."
Down To Earth, November 15, 1996
"The
‘resource illiteracy’ of bureaucrats and lndustry is dangerous for this
country’s poor. Both government and private sector leaders cry themselves
hoarse about India’s high population growth rate, but neither appreciates the
implications for their activities of a high population density. In an ecological context,
high population density simply means that almost all the ecological niches, such as
deserts, rivers, lakes and humid hill slopes, are occupied by a human group for their
sustenance. Hence, if the resource base of a particular area is closed in the name of
conservation or taken over by a politically powerful entity in the name of development, it
would lead to displacement, social injustice, resentment and protests."
Down To Earth, November 30, 1996
"Cancer is a frightening word. As an environmental activist and
writer, I have tried for years to promote nationwide concern about the deteriorating state
of our environment. The idea of writing my own travails as an environmental victim had,
however, never crossed my mind. But obviously, I could not have escaped what was and
is happening all around me. My cancer, like most cancers, is related to environmental
pollution. In India, cancer is still largely regarded as a relatively insignificant threat
to public health."
Down To Earth, November 30, 1996
