Published on 17.2.24 in Dwarka Express

Those were days when people used spare straps for a Hawaii chappal. Repairing and reusing a worn out chappal was not below our dignity, but was the order of the day. A plastic bucket or drum was never thrown just because there was a hole. There used to be a repair-wala usually seen in the streets. A cobbler made his livelihood on repairing the shoes. Nowadays, we are not hearing the call of umbrella repair man. (When rain is also rare, how can be find a umbrella man?). Similarly, the repair of old utensils and kitchenware was a very common activity. Seldom we see repairer roaming around the streets to replace a handle for a mixer or juicer. Certain spare parts are not available in the market. Slowly the spare part culture is vanishing. In fact, it has become a matter of status when we retain the broken utensils or old gadgets. The smart phones are seldom repaired. Even if it demands a small repair, consumers prefer going for a new one. In some cases, the shopkeepers advise condemning certain electronic gadgets even with a reparable part.

Another important example of reuse is old books. We still remember 60’s and 70’s when school books were reused without any inhibition. Students were seen selling their books in good condition to the successors. There were a lot of pavement shops which were seen buzzing with activity when schools reopen. In fact, there used to more crowd in second hand book shops rather than the new bookshops. Even though this practice is slowly disappearing, we still may see it in some pockets of the towns. In small towns and villages, certain repair and reuse activities are seen in some quarters. We cannot say that the repair activity has disappeared completely.

In automobile Industry the changes of wear and tear are abundant, but that does not mean that we should discard the parts which are not used much. One of the most heard repair markets is in automobile industry, but most of the spare parts are replaced without exploring the way the discorded items could be repaired and reused. Actually, the spare part market is said to be a USD 22 Bn market that is expected to extend the longevity of the capital assets. While spare parts must be used sparingly, lack of technical expertise and race for unrealistic sales targets have made the ‘repair and reuse’ paradigm a mockery of sorts. However, there is a lot of scope in automobile industry for repair and reuse activities namely tyre retreading, denting, painting and puncture fixing.  Yet another industry is electronics, where volatility is faster. Electronic gadgets become obsolete so faster that many computer and laptop versions do not have any repair or replacement. Warranty is also not much helpful when the consumer actually lacks technical knowledge. E Waste is a fast-growing industry with large potential for reuse of the components of discarded items. In a scrapped laptop, there are 12 metals which could be reused. Reducing carbon footprints is a mammoth work. Every little effort could go a long way to save the environment from degradation.

Published on 10.2.2024 in Dwarka Express

Pollen grains are important links in proliferating the species. Universally, the flora cannot propagate if pollens are not there. But pollens at the same time are harmful pollutants also. While in Northern India, PM2.5 forms the major component of air pollution, pollen is posing the pollution challenge in South, especially in Bangalore, the garden city. Interestingly the pollution monitoring stations also publish tree, grass and weed pollen indexes daily. On this day, when this article is going for print, the pollen pollution is forecast to be low to moderate. Is having a garden a sin? Not at all. We need the tree cover. But at the same time, it is also true that the pollens are the most formidable pollutant in Bangalore. Come February, all flowering trees bear blooms, making a cause for concern. Pollen is a permanent problem in Bangalore with no solution in the vicinity. Question arises whether having tree is a problem. Trees are needed for multiple needs and no one could object to planting a tree. Bangalore gets its unique title of being the garden city (though it has lost its charm) by having a lot of trees. Trees are the only massive oxygen producer and therefore are essential until perhaps someone manufactures oxygen in lab and make it available for the billions of human beings as well as other living organisms. When it will happen or what will be the impact is unimaginable as of now. When Delhi is reeling under pollution due to suspended particulate matter, the root cause analysis broadly pointed out to stubble burning, automobile emission and construction dust. Graded response Action Plan by Central Pollution Control Board and green ministry could do some strict instruction as the pollutants were essentially man made. Some reliefs were envisaged and experimented. However, in Bangalore, the pollen problem appears to be the most challenging. Here trees cannot be prevented from blooming and proliferating pollens.

Besides pollen from trees, Bangalore also faces pollens from grass and weeds during the month of May every year. Parthenium weed is highly invasive especially in Bangalore one of the prominent causes of pollen pollution. Notoriously known as congress grass, this exotic weed stealthily entered India during the famine of 1950s when the then congress Government imported huge stock of wheat from abroad.  One will see huge trees in the city which had always been instrumental in keeping the micro climate of the city cool. With mushrooming construction activities, the city is losing its charm slowly. Narrow roads, ever increasing traffic and growing urbanization has already posed a lot of challenges. The day is not far off when the city also would face the Delhi’s Particulate Matter challenge.

Asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary disease, allergic rhinitis, rhino-conjunctivitis and skin diseases like eczema and dermatitis are some of the known diseases which get aggravated due to pollen problems. Some of the suggestive remedies may be 1. Reducing exposure to outdoor activities, 2. Increased Vitamin D intake, 3. Increased water consumption 4. Mask wearing and 5. Practicing Pranayama (breathing exercises). But such solutions are layman suggestions, short of scientific proofs. Recently a pulmonologist was heard saying that remaining indoor will not be a solution for asthmatic patients.  The medical fraternity may vary in their views but the solution lies in prevention. Whether Bengalurians will have a remedy and relief from pollen is still a question mark.

Published in Dwarka Express on 3.2.2024

The above line of Mahatma needs serious attention, as we remember Mahatma on Jan 30^th every year, the day on which the doyen of the non-violence movement laid down his life to violence. Prime Minister of India had rightly launched the Swachh Bharat mission was launched on the birth anniversary of Mahatma in 2014. After a decade, now it is good that we make an honest review of what happened and what not, in the swachhata sphere.

India’s Swachh Bharat Mission is the world’s largest sanitation initiative. Exactly after 5 years of its launch, the mission took another step to make India Open Defecation Free. The 2019-mission led to the construction of over 10 crore individual household toilets, and around 6 lakh villages declared themselves Open Defecation Free (ODF). The Government of India approved a total outlay of Rs. 1,40,881 crores in 2020 budget envisaging the sustainability of the ODF status and to cover the villages with Solid and Liquid Waste Management (SLWM). Biodegradable Waste Management has been put in place through composting and setting up of Biogas plants; collection, segregation, and storage facilities for plastic waste management, construction of soak pits, waste stabilization ponds, Decentralized Waste Water Treatment System for Greywater Management and Faecal Sludge Management through co-treatment in existing Sewage Treatment Plants/Faecal Sludge Treatment Plants (STPs/ FSTPs). As per official reports, over 78 per cent of the villages have declared themselves ODF as on date. It is not out of place to mention here that Maharashtra bagged the top rank, followed by Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh in Swachh Survekshan Awards 2023.

Government statics aside, in reality, open defecation is going on even in urban areas. We cannot remain complacent in cleanliness front. We should call a spade a spade. As far as open defecation is concerned, nothing is spared, be it a lake, park, river bund, or a scrub jungle. It is a common sight to see a person carrying a water bottle to the empty neighbourhood to relieve him. The message is loud and clear. We need to go a long way in swacchata mission. Today when we travel in state highways or even on rural roads, it is a common sight that garbage is dumped everywhere. Corporations, Municipalities and Gram Panchayats fail to clear the trash. Our landfills are turning into hills and hillocks. Waste segregation, composting or recycling are not done completely. With ever-growing population and depleting amenities, it has become a challenge for the authorities. “Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed” said Mahatma Gandhi, the visionary. his thoughts were farsighted, even when environmental awareness was not significant. Indian economy has grown multifold since then, but the ecology is being neglected to a large extent. Environment is undergoing onslaughts in one way or other. Yes, to put it differently, we are greedy to ensure that the basic needs of human beings are met religiously.

Thanks to People’s trust for quoting my bird check-listing at their campus (with Karthik)

Published in Dwarka Express on 27.1.2024

The new year has brought a cheer when the Namibian cheetah named Jwala gave birth to 3 cubs in Kuno national park, Madhya Pradesh recently. This is her second delivery. During March 2023, Jwala gave birth to 4 cubs in Indian soil, out of which only one survived. For the first time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 17^th Sep 2022, his birthday released 8 cheetahs from Namibia while another lot of 12 were brought from South Africa subsequently. Readers may remember that out of the 20 cheetahs were brought from South Africa and Namibia only 13 survived. Only one cub survived from the first delivery of Jwala. The last one-year period posed challenges to the fastest animals. Lot of controversies brewed about the death of cheetahs continuously. Radio collaring, extreme heat and kidney failure were some of the prominent reasons quoted by various sources on a few occasions. Some were of the view that the relocation project failed. However, at present, reportedly there are 21 cheetahs in India.

It now appears that the conservation efforts in Kuno forests have yielded a reasonably good result, which needs appreciation. As everyone knows, cheetah is the fastest animal and is said to attain 110 km. speed, which is recorded as the fastest one in the cat family. Many were having a belief that cheetahs were native to India. But according to S H Prater in the book of Indian animals, cheetahs were predominantly present in African forests. Slowly it invaded India like the Asiatic lions, through the north-western passes. It then established itself in the plains and lower hills of northern and central India. Then it straggled southwards as far as the Deccan and Mysore. The last authentic record of the cheetah in India is in 1948 in MP according to Prater.

As this fastest animal has to run long distance, there is no wonder that the habitat destruction resulted in reduced number to become extinct in India. The difference between tiger and cheetah lies in the hunting method. While tigers mostly hide, leap and bounce on its prey, cheetah stalks its prey, runs after it for a long distance and catches it. This particular behaviour is an ample indication to the dire need of forest lands. Habitat destruction has taken a heavy toll in India. The intrusion of man into its territory has become a curse on valuable wildlife. We are losing many species all over the world and India is not an exemption. But India also should not forget that it is one of the world’s biggest biodiversity hotspots and our pride rests on preserving it.

The scientific as well as environmental community is divided on the issue of translocation of the cheetah in India. When protagonists laud the translocation, the antagonists are critical from the suitability of habitat. The erstwhile rulers were fond of hunting and killing the big cats, and obviously the environmental awareness among people were minimal. Another concern is the amendments being brought to Forest Conservation Act, diluting the lofty ideals of the scientific spirits. Thirdly development sans sustainability has stepped in already. If the policy makers do not consider the ethical and ecological aspects of the country, a day will emerge when there won’t be animals on ground. Only zoos will exhibit the animals behind bars.

Published in Dwarka Express on 20.1.2024

Centuries back, feathers were used to write. Even earlier, processed/preserved leaves and tree barks were used for long to write. In fact, every human activity was related to nature. Science and technology brought many inventions and pen is one such item that was of dire need for communications. Those were days, when today’s oldies might have carried the fountain pens with bolted ink to school. The shirt pockets of boys used to get stained with leaking heads of pens. At home, grandma was storing the provisions in Horlicks bottles and Brittania biscuit tin containers. Gone are those nostalgic olden days! Repair/refill/reuse culture has vanished. During the same period, a travel in a train witnessed spilling of plastic cups and tin foiled food packets on both sides of railway lines. By 90’s plastic scrambled the world. Around the same period, ball point pens usage scaled up. All we had to do was to buy a two-rupee ball pen and a packet of 5/10 refills. We remember the bygone days when in the work place also, staff used to go to the Managers for getting free refills. Then came the varieties of trendy ball pens with finer tips that made the writing legible and clear. By then, the fountain pens gave way and almost disappeared. Initially, we had about 3 or 4 types of refills and we were able to use the pen for quite a longer time. Recently a survey was held by us and we sought responses where to get refills. Most of the respondents said, ‘refills have vanished from market’ ‘refill shop is near MG Road (we need to travel 20 KMs to get a refill!). Stationery shops stock mostly pens only, not refills.

The refill culture is relegated to a back seat with the advent of USE & THROW era. Designer pens are not reusable. If you have a hobby for pen collection, you may like varieties. Otherwise, these pens will end up at the landfills. Someone jibed, ‘so what, even the refill is a plastic.’ Very true. We also admit that it is a plastic piece. But at least, it should be made a habit to reduce single use plastics. Some unconfirmed data say that Single Use Plastics (SUPs) constitute only 10 percent of the plastic. However, this 10 percent is a dangerous junk, as all our waterbodies are clogged with SUPs. Polythene carry bags were banned from July 1^st, 2022, but even today the street vendors use it. We are not habituated to carry a cloth bag while going out. REUSE is the easiest way to contribute to environment. PET bottles are another conspicuous example of SUPs. But regrettably, PET bottles are not included in the 19 banned items. It is not clear as to why PET bottles were excluded from the banned items. Used PET bottles are discarded everywhere almost in the entire country. Here and there, some efforts are being made to reuse or recycle these bottles. But there is concrete solution for the PET menace. Carrying a bag and bottle is the best practice.  Will CPCB take steps to include it under the banned SUPs so that manufacturing of the same will stop?

Published in Dwarka Express on 14.1.24

Recently we came across a viral video wherein the person chatting to a group of senior citizens in a park, emphasizes the need for planting 14 saplings to compensate CO2 exhaled during the whole life. Our curiosity grew multifold as this video was repeatedly forwarded. We were curious to view more details about the idea. After a frantic google search, we could find that it is one Parvin Bhagwat. We landed at his website as well as his YouTube channel. Parvin Bhagwat has posted a full video about his mission in his YouTube video captioned ‘Project 14 trees: What, Why and How’. This YouTube video was released 3 years ago. Further we learnt that the organization founded by Parvin, namely, ‘14 trees foundation’ is a charitable organization, dedicated to building sustainable carbon-footprint-neutral ecosystems through re-forestation. Pravin is an entrepreneur, technologist and an academic. During weekends he works on small scale projects such as green living, eco-restoration and social entrepreneurship. We further searched for more information about the efficacy of his mission. The question at large was whether planting 14 trees would compensate the carbon dioxide produced by a human being.

As per studies, a man is estimated to exhale an average of 0.9 kg of carbon dioxide per day as per studies. This works out to roughly 300 kg per year, whereas a reasonably grown tree absorbs 22 kg of carbon dioxide in a year. This means that we need 14 trees to absorb the exhaled carbon dioxide. According to Pravin Bhagwat, instead of quoting the global carbon dioxide emission has reached 38 billion metric tons it is better to tell a person that his exhaling CO2 pollutes air but the same could be compensated by planting 14 trees in his lifetime. However, no theory is without a rider or a counter. On the flip side, a sapling planted today may not be equal to a well grown tree and absorb 22 kg of carbon from day one. Secondly, in reality, all the eight billion global citizens are not going to plant 14 saplings each. Moreover, even if a person plants a tree, he may not have time to nurture it. Thirdly to compensate the already exhaled carbon dioxide, there is no solution. Fourthly, the calculation does not consider the vehicular and industrial emission. Last but not least, saplings are planted on one side while on the other, well grown trees are felled to accommodate developmental projects. All said and done, planting 14 saplings is a reasonably achievable target and everyone can accomplish the mission, ‘Plant 14 saplings & exhale CO2 lifelong’.

Published on 06.01.2024 in Dwarka Express

Once known as ‘Garden city’, Bangalore is slowly losing the charm of its title, it acquired over a long period of time. If one goes for a ride in the city’s iconic roads like MG Road etc., he would realize that the city may not be the same as it was, a few decades before. The freshness one felt when jogging through the misty roads in winter, is almost lost. Old time Bengalurians fondly recollect the good efforts by the forest officer Seturam Gopalrao Neginhal, popularly calledSG Neginhal, a dedicated forest officer, who passed away at 93. He is remembered for his prodigious work in planting millions of trees between 1982 and 1987. Worried by the disappearing tree cover, Guntu Rao, the then Chief Minister of Karnataka approached Neginhal, to initiate corrective steps. At a time when there was a mushrooming of new housing layouts and multi storied complexes, Neginhal’s arrival at Bengaluru in 1981 was a blessing in disguise. It is his wisdom and dedication that transformed Bengaluru into the Garden City of India. But he is no more and the city is also losing its green cover.

The Bengalurians lament that once travelling in Mysore Road was a pleasure. In the last few years, the trees, especially near Majestic, Babuji Nagar etc were completely eliminated and literally there are no trees, say the regular users of the road. This is not an isolated case for Mysore Road alone. The lush green trees which are still seen appear to be full of dust and greyish due to pollutants and dust deposited over the canopy, thanks to the ever-increasing automobiles clubbed with unabated construction everywhere. The tree bases are concretised at many places. Electric wires tied on the trunks are looking messed up. On several places one can see nailed posters on tree trunks. A late evening drive will reveal that trees are now used for the lighting purpose. Are these nor crimes against trees in blatant violation of Karnataka Preservation of Tree Act 1976?

The question arises whether we could bring back the last glory? Preserving the existing trees is better than planting a sapling and waiting for 10 long years to reap the benefits of oxygen yield as well as the shades it would give. The tree offenders must be booked under the present laws. The officials who are expected to preserve the trees use the law liberally to give permission to fell the trees without making proper cost benefit analysis. The laws must be stringent and permission for felling a tree should not be used just to accommodate some infra builders against the assurance to compensate with 10 trees is not correct.

“Saplings for Bengaluru” campaign was a community initiative which targeted one crore saplings in and around Bangalore. Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation is planting trees everywhere in Bangalore as part of their compensatory planting scheme. Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has given massive contracts to certain private planting agencies in the city. Innumerable trees with cost effective tree guards are being planted alongside roads. Though the move is welcome, it is also seen that the planted saplings are not nurtured properly. In some cases, contractors are not seen watering the saplings. Depending solely on rain is not correct as the rain was insufficient last year. All that is needed is more commitment and monitoring to increase the success rate. Will the authorities do that?

Published in Dwarka Express on 30.12.23

Could we stop the global warming? The answer for this simple question may not be easy to comprehend. Sun gives warmth from far above, while the core of the Earth far below is red hot at 6000℃. Besides, the volcanoes erupt often to keep the Earth still warmer. Thus, the naturally generated warmth enables our natural existence. But the global warming released due to green house gases, we talk about, is man-made and have long term implications on our very existence.  Though in the past two hundred years of industrialization, the warming is too fast, in spite of the warning bells ringed by the scientific community, only in the last few decades the global leaders started talking about global warming seriously. The Paris Agreement on climate change that ended on 12^th Dec 2015 was a milestone in revisiting the climate change paradigms. The UN was successful in bringing 196 countries to agree to aim at the goal of reducing the global average temperature increase to 2℃ above the pre-industrial levels and pursue the efforts to limit the increase to 1.5℃ by the end of this century.  The 28^th Conference of Parties (COP28) concluded on 13^th Dec 23 at Dubai. The Heads of states, Environmental Scientists and experts assembled at Dubai to discuss the climate change. One wonders how an oil rich Dubai would keep up the spirit of COP 28 and its commitment to achieve Net Zero emission in 2050 by eliminating fossil fuels. Nevertheless, it must be appreciated that the draft agreement talks about increasing thrice the global efficiency in renewal energy production by 2050 and doubling twice the annual average rate of energy efficiency improvement by 2030. These are some of the positive outcomes, though the voice is feeble at this stage. It needs to be seen how the member nations will reflect the concerns in letter and spirit. “We didn’t turn the page on the fossil fuel era, nut this outcome is the beginning of the end” said the UN Climate Change Executive Secretary at the closing session of COP 28.

In COP 27 held at Egypt, an issue was raised on India’s coal extraction levels. The global leaders wanted affirmative actions by India in the coal front. India depends on coal production mainly and stopping the same will be disastrous. India has therefore refused to bail out coal to achieve the Net Zero emissions in the recently concluded G20 summit. COP 28 has given some breather.  Though there is no immediate pressure on India to stop coal production, India has to underline its strategies to fall in line with COP 28 decisions. India has to revisit its dependency on coal production and work on maximizing the renewable and non-conventional energy sources. Interestingly, the Global Stock Take (GST) of COP 28 is aiming at complete phasing out of coal by 2050 while the oil will be phased out by 60% and gas by 45%. The share of production of oil and gas and consumption happens in developed nations like US while the consumption of developing nations is negligible. Coal production in India in the global parlance is minimal. Among the fossil fuels, the major contributors of global warming are oil and gas, but it appears that COP 28 approach is softer to the major culprits. The third world countries are already in the grip of funding inadequacy to tackle the climate change while simultaneously facing disasters like cyclone and glacier melts due to climate change. We need to wait and see whether the mission of COP 28 will prove pragmatic.

Published in Dwarka Express on 23.12.23

From one tragedy, Chennai is not able to come out, but it appears that the Goddess of Destiny is having a cruel smile on Tamil Nadu in general and Chennai in particular. Cyclone spells on the one side and human failure on the other side, TN Chief Minister shunts between Chennai and Delhi, with his ‘begging’ bowl for flood reliefs.  The placid sea water of Ennore Creek in North Chennai is now posing heavy threat to the biodiversity in Bay of Bengal besides jeopardizing the fishermen’s livelihood. The oil spill from Chennai Petroleum Corporation (CPCL), a subsidiary of Indian Oil corporation, during the heavy floods due to cyclone Michaung has proliferated to 20 Sq KMs into the sea. A thick layer of oil is covering a vast area of the ocean near the coast of Chennai. The impact of oil spill on the living organisms like fish, turtle and crabs are visible, as the dead fish float on the surface. The fishes in the sea are exposed to toxic oil which will affect their reproduction capacity. If fish production is hampered, the fishermen would not be able to make up their livelihood. Besides the residents in the affected areas are complaining of unbearable odour besides irritation in the eyes, itching and dizziness. Especially this affects the vulnerable age groups like seniors, pregnant women and children.

This is not the first time we are hearing of an oil spill at Ennore. Earlier on 28^th Jan 2017 also there was an oil spill when an empty tanker dashed against an inbound loaded oil tanker near Kancheepuram. Though the magnitude of spillage was not comparable to the present one, there definitely was damage to sea biodiversity, especially the fishes. But at that time a tall claim was made that the marine life was not much affected and the fish was eatable. But this time the magnitude is too high and visible that the authorities are finding it difficult to sort out the issue. The compensation plan for the fishing community is in air and of course some compensation will be made. Nothing can compensate the loss of marine biodiversity for this callousness of the CPCL, leave alone the economic loss suffered by the company. It is said that the Tamil Nadu Government has engaged oil sucking machines from helicopters and dispose them in designated locations like Gummidipoondi, which are authorized to dump hazardous wastes. Meanwhile experienced birders say that some birds like cormorants, spot billed pelicans, painted storks and whiskered Terns are the worst affected as the oil spill in water gets infiltrated into their body cuticles which are easily soluble in hydrophobic substance like oil. Once the affected bird again gets into the water for its prey, it will not be able to return as the birds get choked into the oil.

One of the worst oil spill tragedies happened in US in Deepwater Horizon drilling platform in Gulf of Mexico, which killed 11 people in 2010. It is supposed to be the worst oil spill in history with the spillage of about 780000 cubic meter oil. The clean up crew worked in 89 Sq KMs. They used several techniques like floating boom barriers to push it away from beaches and mangroves. In situ burning, skimmers and chemical dispersants to break up the oil slicks. However it is the global experience that oil spills cannot be removed 100%. The best way is to prevent such spillage than struggling to remove it from sea.