FIGHT AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
By Abha Anindita
SHILLONG, Nov 13: Meghalaya’s unique selling point – its natural beauty – is facing a threat.
With its distinct topography and the erratic rainfall patterns, micro-climatic zones et al., the repercussions of climatic irregularity are evident in Meghalaya as well as other Northeastern states. These can be attributed to rapid urbanisation and deforestation, extraction of fossil fuels, mining, quarrying, vehicular emissions, pollution of water bodies among others.
The climate action budget, with an allocation of Rs 3,412 crore for 2023-24, presented by Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, had made almost 15 per cent of the state budget; but this laudable initiative has seen little on-ground progress since March, raising concerns about effective implementation.
Meghalaya’s nature-dependent economy faces climate threats being an economy that is heavily reliant on tourism similar to Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Sikkim.
According to data from the University of Maryland’s Global Forest Watch, the Northeastern region saw the highest loss of forest cover in India in between 2001-2023 accounting for 76% of India’s total tree loss.
Naba Bhattacharjee, Technical Advisor to the Chief Minister, in a conversation with The Shillong Times, stressed the need for sustainable practices to preserve the state’s natural treasures.
Making a clarion call, he advocated a pollution load study and a shift towards niche tourism to protect Meghalaya’s delicate ecosystem.
“We need to do a pollution load study and go for niche tourism and make our nature sustainable for decades. As in sustainability also has a period. Now the loss of revenue can be argued, but as an instance, one can increase the entry fee and allow only 50 people, the tourists who come in will also be able to experience the best of the place without a crowd.”
Adding that the tourists come to Meghalaya for nature, he said, the state has to draw the line between development and conservation.
“I am not saying we do not need roads or development, but we cannot compare ourselves to a state like Maharashtra where a 12-lane road should sound fine, but for us, a two-lane also should work, owing to our distinct topography,” he added.
Bhattacharjee, emphasising that the Northeastern states are on the way to a huge climatic repercussion if action is not taken now, said a climate vulnerability assessment, an effective disaster management policy and a pollution load study is the need of the hour.
HH Mohrmen, a writer, environmental activist and Unitarian Pastor, on being queried if the events like the G20 summit do have any role to play in battling climate change at the grassroots, said, “I am uncertain whether global summits or even local meetings can help create awareness about the climate change that has become a global challenge. I am unsure how much of the discussion at the summit has percolated down to the masses to bring about real change.
I believe that more than meetings and conferences, the need of the hour is to take action. We don’t have much time, so it is time to act.”
Rapid deforestation is one of the major concerns of the state, which also results in soil erosion and further unusual floods and destruction of agricultural produce, which was unheard of a few years ago.
Earlier, even Bhattacharjee, stating that since most of the land in the state belongs to the people, said that it is difficult to stop them from cutting down trees on their own land, as for them it is their means of livelihood and are low hanging fruits.
However, he added that the ‘GREEN Meghalaya’, an initiative implemented under the Payment for Ecosystems Model or ‘PES’ that offers compensation to forest owners and forest-owning communities under some essential conditions and categories to preserve the forests, has been doing well since being introduced in 2022.
It may also be recalled that Legislator Adelbert Nongrum, in the autumn session of the Assembly, had presented a resolution to oppose the Forest Conservation (Amendment) Act 2023. However, the resolution had no takers in the house.
Nongrum’s take was this that the new law would dilute the indigenous people’s rights over land and resources in Meghalaya.
On this, Mohrmen was of the opinion that the objective of the Amendment Act is noble — to achieve the target of Net Zero Emissions by 2027.
He added, “However, it is contradictory in the sense that forests located alongside rail lines, roads, and other public amenities can be used for public purposes. The biggest contradiction is the declaration in the Act that forests within a hundred kilometres from the Line of Control can be used for the construction of buildings or other strategic purposes for national interest. The priority here should be the development of conservation.”
However, both the experts were unanimous in their viewpoint of discouraging mass tourism and engaging with stakeholders via SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, and Threat) analysis to determine the way forward in promoting tourism sustainably.
A holistic approach and a serious war against climate change is the need of the hour to prevent the state from taking the destructive way.