By Wangbo Wangsu George
Meghalaya, the very name whispered by Prof. Shiba Prasad Chatterjee in 1936 – ‘the abode of clouds’ evokes images of ethereal beauty, mist-laden hills, and an untouched natural grandeur. This nomenclature, officially adopted upon statehood on January 21, 1972, perfectly encapsulated the region’s mystique. Indeed, British colonialists, struck by its verdant charm and temperate climate, fondly christened Shillong the “Scotland of the East.” For Northeastern Indians, Meghalaya stood as a prime destination for education, a sanctuary for respite, and a haven for tourism. Today, that idyllic vision is rapidly receding into the annals of history, becoming a mere narrative in children’s textbooks. What confronts us now is the stark, unvarnished reality of an environmental onslaught, we are paying for decades of negligence, unchecked urbanization, rampant industrialization, and a litany of failed government projects and schemes.
The very fabric of our ‘abode of clouds’ is fraying, thread by thread, under the relentless pressure of human activities. This ecological degradation is not an abstract concept; it is a tangible force reshaping our landscapes, impacting our health, and threatening the very survival of our unique biodiversity and traditional ways of life. We are witnessing, perhaps, the most profound manifestation of “ecological amnesia”, a collective forgetting of our intrinsic connection to nature, a dismissal of ancestral wisdom, and a perilous detachment from the environmental consequences of our actions.
The Erosion of Memory: Ecological Amnesia at Play
Ecological amnesia is a subtle yet insidious phenomenon, often described as the tendency for each generation to redefine environmental degradation based on what they experienced in childhood, effectively lowering the baseline of what is considered “normal” environmental quality (Kahn & Friedman). For those who grew up amidst pristine forests, crystal-clear rivers, and unpolluted skies in Meghalaya, the current state of affairs is a profound shock. But for younger generations, a polluted stream or a denuded hillside might be their perceived norm, thus eroding the urgency for change. Our customary laws and practices, such as the sacred groves (Law Kyntang), served as powerful conservation mechanisms. These indigenous systems embodied deep ecological knowledge, passed down through oral traditions and communal practices (Gadgil & Guha). Yet, in our pursuit of modern development, we have largely abandoned these time-tested practices. The erosion of this traditional ecological knowledge, often unwritten and under-valued, is a critical component of our creeping ecological amnesia.
The Unholy Trinity
The pillars of Meghalaya’s environmental crisis stand upon an unholy trinity: unplanned urbanization, unregulated industrialization, and widespread negligence, both governmental and societal. Unplanned urbanization has transformed Shillong from a quaint hill station into a sprawling metropolis, its growth largely haphazard and unsustainable. Unchecked hill cutting for new constructions has led to severe soil erosion and increased landslide vulnerability, a grim reality particularly evident during the monsoon season (MSDMA’s, Annual Landslide Vulnerability Assessment, 2023). The increasing population density has strained existing infrastructure, especially solid waste management systems, leading to overflowing landfills and the indiscriminate dumping of garbage in rivers and valleys (Shillong Waste Management Audit Report, 2022). Water bodies (Umkhrah and Umshyrpi) once vital arteries of Shillong, are now choked with plastic waste, raw sewage, and industrial effluents, their aquatic life decimated beyond recognition.
The advent of industries, particularly cement plants and the infamous coal mining has left indelible scars on Meghalaya’s fragile landscape. While coal mining was a significant economic activity for decades, its environmental repercussions were catastrophic: pervasive acid mine drainage, widespread deforestation, irreversible land degradation, and severe air pollution from burning coal and dust (NGTO, since 2014). Even with the formal ban, reports suggest illegal mining activities continue in isolated pockets.
Similarly, the proliferation of cement factories, especially in areas like Jaintia Hills, has led to extensive limestone quarrying, physically destroying hills, fragmenting critical forest habitats, and generating significant dust pollution that impacts ambient air quality and local agricultural productivity (Industrial Emission and Quarrying Impact Survey, Jaintia Hills,2020-2023). The cumulative impact of these unbridled industries on fragile ecosystems has been devastating, transforming once lush green hills into barren, scarred landscapes.
The state’s environmental crisis is further compounded by a pervasive sense of governmental negligence and the often-ineffective implementation of environmental policies and schemes. While comprehensive policies exist on paper, their enforcement remains woefully inadequate (CAG, Report on Environmental Compliance, 2021). Projects ostensibly aimed at river cleaning, solid waste management, frequently falter due to a critical lack of sustained funding, poor planning, alleged corruption. These failed government projects are not merely administrative lapses; they represent profound lost opportunities for timely intervention and a fundamental betrayal of public trust. The enduring absence of comprehensive land-use planning, coupled with a reactive approach to escalating environmental challenges, has allowed the crisis to deepen unchecked.
The Environmental Onslaught
Despite being the ‘Abode of Clouds’ and home to some of the wettest places on Earth (Mawsynram, Cherrapunji), parts of Meghalaya now face acute water scarcity, especially during the dry season (District-wise Water Stress and Scarcity Assessment, 2023). This tragic paradox is a direct result of extensive deforestation, pervasive river pollution, and the unchecked depletion of vital groundwater aquifers. Consequently, water-borne diseases are increasingly prevalent, particularly in urban centers and mining-affected areas, posing a significant public health challenge. ( Annual Public Health Surveillance Report, 2022).
Vast tracts of once-dense forests have been cleared, threatening countless endemic species of flora and fauna (State of Forest Report: 2021 Assessment). The irreversible loss of forest cover also exacerbates climate change impacts and disrupts delicate ecological balances. Industrial emissions, burgeoning vehicular exhaust, and dust from unregulated activities have collectively led to a noticeable decline in air quality in urban centers like Shillong and major industrial zones (Air Quality Index Data for Shillong and Jaintia Hills Industrial Belt, 2023). Deforestation, unscientific quarrying, and indiscriminate hill cutting have stripped the land of its protective vegetative cover, leading to an alarming increase in landslides during the monsoon seasons, causing devastating loss of life and property (Monsoon-Related Disaster Incidents Summary, 2018-2023). The degradation of natural resources directly impacts the livelihoods of countless communities traditionally dependent on forests, agriculture, and water bodies, leading to profound cultural erosion and increasing economic hardship. Various local NGOs like ‘PMF and HEW’ have been barking like a mad dog.
Reclaiming Our Environmental Heritage
Reversing this pervasive environmental onslaught requires a multi-pronged approach, demanding urgent, coordinated action, unwavering genuine political will, and a profound and rapid shift in collective consciousness. The first step is to move decisively beyond mere rhetoric and ensure the rigorous enforcement of existing environmental protection laws. This necessitates a stringent crackdown on illegal mining operations, strict regulation of quarrying activities, the imposition of stringent pollution control norms on all industries, and the immediate implementation of punitive measures for all violators drawing upon specific guidelines from the CPCB and relevant sections of the EPA, 1986.
Urbanization should be meticulously guided by comprehensive, sustainable planning frameworks as per NITI Aayog’s recommendations. Genuine public participation in all urban planning decisions is absolutely essential to ensure community ownership. Large-scale, community-led reforestation programmes, meticulously focusing on native tree species, are absolutely vital for rapidly restoring lost forest cover, significantly improving the land’s water retention capabilities, and enhancing the state’s rich biodiversity as per MFM Regulations, 2019. Concurrently, comprehensive river restoration projects, including critical desilting efforts and aggressive pollution abatement strategies, are also urgently needed to revive our dying waterways.
Meghalaya must strategically attract and vigorously foster industries that are inherently environmentally sustainable and unequivocally in tune with its unique ecological sensitivity. For existing industries, a decisive shift towards cleaner production technologies and strict, transparent adherence to EIA are imperative, with strict penalties for non-compliance under EIA Notification, 2006.
To effectively combat the pervasive ecological amnesia, we must actively integrate comprehensive environmental education into the very core of our schooling system from the earliest age. This education should not only impart scientific knowledge about ecosystems and sustainability but also rekindle a deep-seated respect for nature and an understanding of traditional ecological practices.
Finally, true and effective environmental governance unequivocally requires the active and sustained participation of local communities, dedicated NGOs, and a vigilant civil society. Empowering local bodies to rigorously monitor environmental compliance, promptly report violations, and actively participate in all relevant decision-making processes can significantly enhance governmental accountability and the effectiveness of conservation efforts. The ethereal beauty that earned it its cherished names is now under severe, unprecedented threat. The current environmental onslaught is a profound collective failure, a failure of governance, a failure of industry, and, ultimately, a failure of us, the citizens, who have allowed ecological amnesia to cloud our judgment and diminish our resolve.
The choice before us is stark and clear: continue on this perilous path of environmental degradation, condemning future generations to a land stripped bare of its natural heritage, or collectively rise to the monumental challenge, reclaim our vital ecological memory, and embark on a concerted, unwavering effort to heal our ‘abode of clouds’. The time for decisive action is now, before the ‘cloud-kissed hills’ become a mere dusty memory, irrevocably lost to time and neglect.