Essays

"A man's invaluable wealth is the God-gifted nature; all oilier riches are nothing before it".

It is said that, "No bird fouls its own nest". But it is not true in the case of man who has destroyed his only home through his deleterious deeds just for some petty gains. Now, our planet is suffering the consequences of man's greed in the form of natural disasters all over the globe by experiencing cyclones, global warming, infertility of soil, extinction of rare species, etc. caused by global pollution in the atmosphere due to ozone depletion, water pollution, nuclear hazards, etc.

Pure air is a gift of divine; a pre-requisite for healthy living. Industrial establishments in cities are throwing up huge amount of obnoxious fumes in the air. Besides this, aerosols, cement dust, gases from manholes, smog, smoke released by vehicles, etc. also pollute the air. Over the years, air pollution has increased rapidly thus resulting in a simultaneous rise in various deadly diseases like lung concer, asthma, nervous deseases, high bood pressure, cough and chest pain, etc. Another consequence of air pollution is the occurrence of acid rain which destroys invaluable property besides physically attacking the humans.

Like air, pure drinkable water is also necessary for healthy survival of humanity. When factories discharge their toxic and acidic wastes, flowing towards the outskirts of various cities, they corrode the pipelines in which they are flowing. This leads to leakage of wastes under the ground and thus they easily contaminate the drinking water flowing towards the heart of city. This drinking water, being highly polluted and poisonous, is responsible for death of thousands of people. Due to this only, level of fluorides in drinking water has drastically increased in various cities of India, causing fluorosis-an incurable bone disease.

Noise pollution in almost all major cities has been reported to be the cause of metabolic disorders, hearing disorders, insomnia, thus affecting the nervous system which sometimes leads to madness. Cacophonous sounds of vehicular horns, loud speakers, tape-recorders, etc. usually cause headache to the urbanites. Similar to this is the latest, electronic pollution. People In the cities watch TV, play video games, etc. oblivious of the fact that invisible electromagnetic radiation emitted from televisions, computers, video games are detrimental for general health of man as they affect the brain cells. It has been reported that in Delhi, 5-8 percent of women watching TV for long duration are likely to get epileptic fits.

Non-biodegradable pollutants such as plastics are also highly poisonous and create havoc that is potentially eternal. Plastic products are used in almost all the daily chores of urban people. These plastics when dumped in the ground or water do not disintegrate and instead black fresh air from entering the soil. This causes retardation in plant growth and poisoning of underground water. In fact, the recycled plastics which are in common use in the markets today are more catastrophic to the environment than many other pollutants. Although, plastic bags have been banned in various big cities, but people still use them due to the lack of such a handy alternative. Massive awareness has to be developed to make a permanent shift from poly-bags to paper or jute bags.

But today, the pollution which is most ominous for humanity is the radioactive pollution. Water, air and soil, all get polluted by atomic experiments. Nuclear explosions cause the radioactive substances to disperse throughout the atmosphere at a phenomenal velocity and cause deadly radioactive pollution. Through grass, these substances enter animals and through their milk and meat into the body of man causing cancer and genetic disorder. Thus, the cities located near the nuclear test sites and atomic power stations are constantly under the effect of harmful radiation.

In cities, a rat race for development is going on among the people, ignoring the cost at which it is being achieved. Man has always contested against nature and won dishonestly. But the time has come for man to realize that the cost of this development by going against the nature is exorbitant enough to put the human race under an unplayable debt. In order to save the Mother Nature from further contamination and keep the wheel of development railing, it is better to adhere to non-conventional energy sources such as solar energy, tidal power, wind energy, geothermal energy, etc. These are all free gifts of nature and available to us in infinite quantity and at the same time are eco-friendly. And we must remember, whatever we destroy cannot be replaced by us nor can nature replenish it.

The more we are developing materially day-by-day the more we are becoming indifferent about hte ill-effects of pollution and the ecological imbalance. It is imperative that people realize the great danger posed by pollution to mankind. Every day we inhale the black noxious fumes spewed by the vehicles, as if it is the most normal thing for us to do. Water pollution also remains unabated, for instance 70% of the effluents draining into the Yamuna are untreated.

As the population in the cities grows due to large influx from rural areas, the public transportation system becomes tardy. The affluent people buy automobiles leading to over- crowding of the already congested road. This leads to more traffic-jams and the commuters breathe the smoke exhaled by these vehicles causing health hazards. The particulate matter emitted by the automobiles contains poisonous carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides. In addition, we have thermal plants, cement manufacturing plants and other industrial units which pump ash and sulphur in the atmosphere. These industries also aid in water pollution through the effluents released into the rivers and seas. They continue to run unhindered due to the apathy of pollution-control measures and lack of proper monitoring by the Government.

The link between pollution and health is becoming clearer by the day. The human respiratory system has in-built traps to catch particles before they enter the lung. But the smaller particles especially those containing sulphur elude and go through to the lungs. The worst culprits are Indian diesel engines which are noisy and produce high levels of nitrogen oxides which cause bronchial infections and headaches. Exposure to fine and ultra fine particulate matter can even cause cancer. Adulteration of petrol and diesel with kerosene and hexane magnifies pollution through diesel engines. Improper maintenance of vehicles also aids in pollution.

Our national monument, the Taj Mahal, has become a classic example of the effects of pollution. The once brilliant white marble structure has been blackened by the pollutants and its resplendent features have been affected adversely. It is analogous to the clear pink lungs of a man being blackened by soot. When Tokyo with a population of 27 million has a better environment quality, why can't New Delhi with a population of only 14 million and the other Indian cities with even lesser population have it? One of the main reasons is the arrogance and ignorance of our bureaucrats and politicians. Our politicians are least bothered by issues concerned with the environment.

Af far as regulation goes, the Government is loath to take on the auto industry. So the courts have stepped in. Most of India will be bound by Euro I norms by April 2000. But these are standards that were used by Europe seven years ago. Because of the levels of pollution in Delhi, the Supreme Court has set Euro II standards in the National Capital Region (NCR). But by next year Euro II will be defunct and there will be even more strict emission control norms in Europe.

We are fast heading towards ecological disaster and we should realize the import of the problem facing us. Only then can we find a solution for it. The following are some of the measures which can be taken to tackle pollution: The first step in the battle against pollution is creating awareness about its harmful effects on the population.

Enforcement of strict emission control norms on par with present European standards in all the Indian cities. A time limit of say six months can be given for the vehicles (including auto-rickshaws and trucks) to enable them to conform to these norms. Any violation of the code should be dealt with by instant revoking of the licenses of the owner and registration of the vehicles.

To take care of polluting industries, a new body with power for checking and enforcing pollution norms should be constituted. It must be given special powers to take quick and instant action against erring industrial units. The use of public transport should be encouraged among the people. Instead of buying more vehicles and clogging the city roads with a number of vehicles, public transport should be shown as a better option. But before this, the public transport system has to be completely revamped and enhanced.

Adulteration of petrol and die seal (which is being carried on in all the cities) should be dealt with strictly and swiftly, hi certain foreign countries, if the pollution level exceeds a pre- set limit, private vehicles (ending with odd numbers on the first day and those ending with even numbers on the second day) are not allowed on the road. A similar system to suit India can be implemented.

The Government must consider seriously imposing heavy dose of taxation upon those car owners for whom the .K-question of these vehicles is non-essential. In fact, car has become a status symbol. So let heavy taxes act as an disincentive. The above measures might seem extreme but they are essential. The onus for taking the initiative to

Implement: them is with the Government and requires co- ordination between the Ministries of Petroleum, Water

Resources, Surface Transport, Environment, Urban Development and Law. If the above the pollution control measures are followed strictly then I am confident that very soon the people in the cities will be able to breathe clean air again.