Ecological disaster looming, say experts ...by Alladi Jayasri in the HINDU newspaper

`We are burning the candle at both ends and it's beginning to show'

BANGALORE: As the Dharam Singh-led coalition Government sets foot into the second year in office, the report card on its performance on the protection and conservation of the environment in its freshman year is, in one word, "bad." The former Special Secretary, Environment, A.N. Yellappa Reddy, who now acts as conciliator on the lok adalat of the Karnataka High Court, where many of the environment-related cases land up, said, "I have not seen a single sign that this Government cares for the people who voted it to power, let alone for the environment."

There is no environmental policy, no accountability and no audit of any of its actions. "There is not one instance of the polluter being punished. What is worse, the Government is caught in a tangle of cases and litigation, and chasing its own tail, trying to avoid being pulled up for contempt as it drags its feet on compliance," he said.

The green belt is shrinking and receding further out of Bangalore. In rural areas, where groundwater is at a premium, rivers are being polluted, and livestock and people are forced to drink water that is little better than sewage. "We are burning the candle at both ends and it's beginning to show. Only the Government is blind to it," Mr. Reddy said. Wildlife First's Praveen Bhargav said, "It is worrying to see that the Government is seeking a review of forest and wildlife laws which were put in place by Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. This shows a shocking lack of vision on the critical need to save our biodiversity heritage." "Instead of showing it cares for its forests and rivers and wildlife, it is preparing the ground for pollution of pristine ecosystems that will only snowball into an ecological disaster with terrible consequences for the farmers it claims to protect," Mr. Bhargav said. The environment consultant H.C. Sharatchandra who has served as Special Secretary, Environment, said solid waste, effluent-laden water, biomedical and hazardous waste is disposed of and managed only on paper. "The rules and laws are in place, but social responsibility is something the Government has not heard of," he said.