THE OTHER SIDE
One of the things which the recent disaster in Chamoli district has confirmed is that we tend to fall into a pattern after every such tragedy. As was witnessed after the 2013 disaster, a few days after the latest tragedy, focus was laid on various aspects including climate change, environmental damage caused by large hydro power projects and major roadworks and the role of such factors in fuelling disasters especially in a mountain state like Uttarakhand. If one considers large hydro power projects and major road constructions, the environmental damage caused by such activities is evident while the increased potential for disaster in the future cannot be ruled out. However, there is an important point which both the proponents and opponents of such activities seem to be missing. Both the power projects and roadworks are executed supposedly to meet the requirements of the citizens. Here too one would argue that the requirements increase and will continue to rise considerably because not enough is being done to ensure efficient and judicious use of resources and facilities.
When it comes to electricity, it is stated that a major portion of the electricity produced is being wasted. According to official estimates, nearly 20 per cent of the electricity is lost due to aggregate technical and commercial reasons (AT&C losses). According to the Ministry of Power, India has been responsible for almost 10 per cent of the increase in global energy demand since 2000. India’s energy consumption has almost doubled since 2000 and the potential for further rapid growth is enormous. By 2040 more than 40 per cent of primary energy supply will be imported, up from 32 per cent in 2013. The ministry further states that when it comes to performance of category-wise generation during 2019-20, thermal dropped by 2.75 per cent, hydro increased by 15.48 per cent, nuclear increased by 22.90 per cent, Bhutan import increased by 31.49 per cent and renewable increased by 9.12 per cent.
This is what the authorities state. What is not delved into is how much electricity is used for important and useful purposes and how much is wasted on unnecessary and wasteful aspects. Some years ago, when a union minister was interacting with a few journalists in Dehradun, among other things, I sought his views on light pollution and whether street lighting should light up the road instead of also unnecessarily lighting up the night sky. The union minister who should have been very much aware of light pollution considering the ministry he was handling, simply said that the municipal authority is responsible for turning the lights on and off. He was evidently either unaware or uninterested in wastage of electricity to generate light pollution. On another occasion, in a workshop a senior bureaucrat from Delhi was asked whether focus should also be laid on making the consumers seriously understand the importance of not wasting electricity. The official took the subject on a different tangent and left the issue unaddressed. The minister or the bureaucrat alone can’t be blamed because light pollution and other ways of wasting electricity to our own detriment have actually become popular trends. So, basically the focus is mainly on power generation and the consumption of electricity. There are laws and bodies in place to ensure energy efficiency but these do not appear to be having a concrete effect on a broad scale.
When it comes to roads, here too the rising number of vehicles and the demand of people for convenient access fuels major road constructions. While one may not favour the major environmental damage caused by ambitious projects, there are residents in Chamoli district who have been protesting for nearly two months now demanding the widening of a motor road in the area. Like electricity, roads are also vital for most people. However, in both the cases, the authorities do not seem to be focusing on aspects which will ensure the best use of the available resources and prevention of indiscriminate wastage. If the authorities manage to effectively implement at least the basic traffic rules and provide proper public transportation, the situation would be considerably different in many if not all the cases. One wonders whether the logical and cheaper aspects are purposely ignored in order to facilitate major generation of income and employment for some segments.
It is important to note here that it is the people who are ultimately responsible for the construction of large power projects and major roadworks because it is the consistently rising demand, wasteful consumption and utilisation of resources and facilities by the public which creates the demand for more. The government simply does the needful to meet the increase in demand even though the focus should not be limited to this alone. Next time you blame the government for causing environmental damage, do also think about your role in facilitating the projects which are causing the damage. Otherwise, we will continue ignoring the elephant in the room.
Saturday, 20 February 2021 | PNS | Dehradun
