Swachh Bharat

One of the main factors for Urban Pollution and Unhygienic Conditions, is the Household Waste / Garbage / Litter thrown away indiscriminately.

What is Waste/Garbage/Litter?

We talk of "Throwing Away" the items that are considered to be no longer useful or needed- wrappers, plastic bags, paper, empty bottles/ jars / cans, used electronic/ electrical items & other items used in our daily life, the kitchen waste, left overs of food etc. One, who carelessly "Throws Away" things considered to be of no use, causes Littering.

The nature takes care of Waste Material what is natural (Biodegradable).What we need to worry about is the Waste (Non-degradable) created by man made items. No matter how small, each man made item leaves behind a trail of wastes at every stage of its Life-Cycle.

What is Thrown Away Comes Back !

The fact of life is that all we "Through Away" as waste, ends up ultimately polluting Air, Water & Soil, adversely affecting the very "Food Cycle" & Quality of our Lives. That is where this "AWAY" ends up finally. The Waste cannot be wished Away as there isNo Away.

How can we be Part of "Swachh Bharat" ( Clean India) ?

The items being thrown away from our households as waste, consist of Paper, Plastic Bags, Packing Material, Foils, Cans, Glass / Plastic Containers, Electrical / Electronic items etc. (Dry Waste). As all these items can be Recycled for salvaging and making new products with value addition, they should not be subjected to "Throw Away".

The old News Papers, Note Books & Magazines and used paper should be neatly stacked & stored for disposing off once a month or so. Similarly, all "Dry Waste", instead of putting into the Dust Bin, should be stored separately in a gunny sack or container and handed over once in a week / fortnight to the Person picking up the garbage. The electrical / electronic wastes should be deposited at the designated centers for the purpose.

Only the biodegradable "Wet Garbage" containing Kitchen Waste, Food Items, Flowers erc. - should find their way to "Dust Bin" for Daily Collection. This avoids the volume of garbage to be picked up & transported daily and the harmful Land Fills & Littering.

Let us do our bit for making "Swachh Bharat Mission" being launched on Birth Day of Mahatma Gandhi ( Father of the Nation ), 2 nd October 2014, a Success &Reality !

 

Bribery on Indian Roads

Bribe Amount Close to Rs.22,000 Crore every year

The alarming levels and magnitude of corruption on Indian Roads, by the concerned enforcement agencies is being widely talked about and an open secret. On Indian Roads, the Truckers often pay bribe for lack of proper and valid documents, overloading, violations including rash driving. A study conducted by Centre for Media Studies across a dozen major transport hubs covering over 1,200 truck drivers, is reported to have revealed that in 60% cases, the Police and the Officials from Enforcing Agencies extort money from Truckers by stopping them without giving a reason. It is also revealed that around 90% of the bribe goes to Policemen and Transport department personnel. The study estimated the total bribe amount on Roads to be close to Rs. 22,000 crore every year.

Modus Operandi

According to the findings of the study, which was conducted at transport hubs including Ludhiana, Delhi, Ahmadabad, Indore, Mumbai, Kolkata, Vijayawada, Bangalore and Chennai, illegal tokens, passes and stickers valid for a period of month are issued by these government agencies to allow vehicles to pass without checks. In many cases, the concerned government officials are found to use holograms on bribe receipts to distinguish "original" from "fake" and the code words like "April Fool, May Day and Independence Day" and mobile phones to convey the "links".

Harassment by Police & Transport Depts.

The findings — based on the surveyors interaction with drivers, fleet operators and law enforcing agencies — also exposed how trucks and commercial heavy vehicles were the punching bags for enforcement agencies. Drivers claimed that in 12% cases, authorities challan Truckers even when there is no overloading. They said harassment by police and transport department officials were the two major irritants for drivers on roads. While 77% of them felt Police were the biggest irritant, 73% said it was harassment by Transport Department officials.

Bribe for Non- Compliance & Speed Money

However, Drivers and Truck operators admitted that they paid bribe for failing to meet norms or to get things done quickly. They conceded that the major reasons for paying bribe at transport department offices were getting registration and fitness certificates besides getting and renewing permits. On roads, truckers often pay bribe for lack of proper and valid documents, overloading, violations including rash driving. They also said that by paying bribe, they avoided hassles in physical verification of goods.

Some Facts

* In 60% of cases, officials avoid giving reason for stopping vehicle, but demand cash

* Corruption share: Police (45%), RTO (43%) & Others (12%)

* Irritants on road: Harassment by police (77%) & RTO (73%), Wait at inter-state borders (58%), outside towns/cities for no entry (55%)

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Lack of Road Safety

Every day hundreds of people are dying in Road Accidents but they get unnoticed or ignored.The sudden and tragic death  of Shri Gopinath Munde, Hon'ble Minister for Rural Development, GOI,   in the Road Accident right in New Delhi, highlighted  lack of Road Safety on Indian roads

The Planning Commission Member, Shri B.K. Chaturvedi while inaugurating a regional conference on "Road Safety Strategy" organized by International Road Foundation (IRF). In October 2011, is reported to have said that Road Accident deaths and injuries cost India at least Rs.1 lakh crore per year, and the Govt. aims to reduce them by 50% by 2020.

India seems to have dubious distinction of registering maximum number of road accident deaths annually, with reported death of 125,660 people and another 515,458 receiving severe or minor injuries in Road Accidents during 2009. An estimated 160,000 people were understood to have been killed in Road accidents in 2010.

The experts on Road Safety feel that the number of accidents and deaths in road accidents reported are less than the actual figures due to lack of scientific data collection. The Road Accidents are serious issues, but little attention is being paid to this. Experts also feel that while annually the Nation loses almost 1.5% of its GDP on account of Road Accidents, not even10% of that amount is being spent to make our roads safe. While pushing construction of National Highways to accelerate infrastructure growth, the focus should also be on making Roads Safe.

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Don't Play with the Nature

 

Don't Play with the Nature !

           

Nothing in the Nature Lives for Itself.

Rivers Don't Drink their Own Water.

Trees Don't Eat their Own Fruit.

Sun Doesn't Give Heat for Itself.

Flowers Don't Spread Fragrance for Themselves----.

                               Living for Others is the Rule of Nature.

                                                                    &

                         Playing with the Nature can be Disastrous

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Myth of Jan Lokpal Bill !

               

The Delivery System of the Revenue and Police Departments in particular, at the Grass Roots (Mandal/Tahasil) level, is managed or mismanaged by Tahasildar and Police Inspector. They can either deprive or bestow the Right to Property and Life for a price unchallenged, particularly in remote rural areas. All others at State, Division and District Levels appear to be superfluous and wasteful, as they do not seem to be accountable for monitoring & ensuring that the Delivery Mechanism at the Mandal level functions smoothly & satisfactorily.

Unfortunately, the delivery systems, be it Revenue, Police ,Panchayat Raj , Rural Development, Tribal Development, Forest, Health, Education, Irrigation, Power, Roads etc. Departments, at the Mandal level have become the channels for draining out the public funds, meant for well intended projects like REGS, LWE, Rural Water Supply etc. The District Collector , who is supposed to supervise & govern the functioning and monitor the performance of about more than 50 activities /departments/committees , does not seem to have full grasp of some of them, leave alone controlling and governing them.

The painful conclusion is that the Delivery Systems at the Grass Roots level are indifferent / insensitive, unresponsive and ineffective. Secondly there is no Good Governance, particularly at the District Level--- Responsive, Transparent, Accountable, Effective & Efficient, and Rule of Law-- and Thirdly, there are no independent Regulating / Monitoring  Agencies which can act and function without the interference of NETA / BABU nexus. Without these, Jan Lokpal Bill will not make any difference and the Corruption will continue to spread like cancer, harming the well being of the Nation.

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GREEN MANIFESTO 2014

Introduction

Economic development has been the byword in our Country’s progress in the competitive global market of the 21 st century. But the country is paying an enormous price for much hyped progress which has brought in its wake ecological devastation and numerous health problems, particularly to the vulnerable sections of the society.

Water quality degradation results in the highest health toll accounting for health costs worth thousands of Crores of Rupees a year. In all most all our cities, Air Pollution levels exceed WHO recommended health standards. The levels are getting worse year by year, because of ever increasing urban population, inadequate public transportation, growing number of automobiles, high energy consumption &unbridled industrialization.

Despite all the Acts, Regulatory Agencies and enormous expenditure incurred, none of our Rivers&Lakes are nowhere near becoming clean. Water treatment & supply systems for urban drinking water, not to talk of the most neglected rural water supply systems, are still so rudimentary and inadequate even to get rid of bacteriological contamination. Even the bottled water marketed by some of the multinationals, is not entirely free from chemical contamination. Hard to imagine the chemical contamination levels of the drinking water supplied to Urban (India) and Rural (Bharat) communities.

The World Bank study in 1997 revealed that the largest share of the country’s economic costs of health & environmental degradation emerged from growing pollution of Water and Air, amounting to Rs.24,500 crores a year. Yet the finance minister had proclaimed that the country’s economic growth rate for the previous year was around 4%, ignoring the fact that the development had come at the cost of extensive environmental damage and high health costs to the people. The cost of Environmental Degradation, which was estimated to be around 4.5 % of GDP in 1992, makes the growth rate negative in real terms. Do we still call this Development / Growth, if so for Whom?

While the political leaders mouthed their rhetoric on Environmental Pollution Control and the lethargic populace slumbered in ignorance and indifference, our Air got dirtier and harmful to breath, our Water got polluted and unsafe to drink and our Land got contaminated and unsuitable for growing food items. The years of inaction is taking their toll. The Environment will continue to be a Non-Issue to the Politicians, making the bureaucrats insensitive & unresponsive to environmental issues, as long as the Voters do not assert themselves and make “Environment an Election Issue”.

National Level Issues

Some of the “Green Manifesto” issues to be considered by all the Political Parties as part of their “Election Manifesto 2014” are listed below:

1)The development of oil intensive automobile–centered Transportation System based on National Highway network is not a viable alternative, to well established energy efficient Railway Network and will not make “India Shine” on a sustainable basis. Rail Transportation should take precedence over Road Transportation for long distance haulage. The Personalized Motor transportation to be made expensive and high priority to be given to clean, affordable and functional PUBLIC Transportation systems. The recommendation to scrap Commercial vehicles of over 15 years be implemented, as the use of fuels like Diesel becomes very inefficient leading to higher loads of Air Pollution. The Coastal Shipping & Inland-water transportation to be given higher priority in the Planning and Budget allocations.

2) As the “Energy Efficiency” is the fastest growing source of energy, at the least cost, the thrust and focus should be on “Energy Conservation”. To Encourage /Reward energy efficiency improvement rather than adding capacities at lower efficiencies.

3) Priority to be given for the use of energy from Renewable Sources (Not Nuclear),such as Solar PV & Thermal, Wind etc, instead of opting for new capacities based on Fossil Fuels, most of which being imported and likely to be depleted in not too distant a future. At least 20% of the total Electrical Energy requirements from Renewable Sources to be targeted by 2020.

4)The Acts and Laws for protection of Water Bodies- Rivers, Lakes etc -must be reviewed and strengthened for their strict implementation, with fast and stringent punishment for violations. The higher priority is to be given for decentralized Sewage Collection, Treatment and Disposal for ensuring accountability and to facilitate recycling of treated waters.

5) The strict implementation of “MSW Rules 2000” issued in compliance with Supreme Court Directive, regarding Collection, Transportation and Treatment / Disposal of Municipal Solid Waste be ensured in a given time frame

6) As Pollution Control Boards do not cover the environmental damage caused by agriculture run-off, aquaculture and many such activities, Central and State Pollution Control Boards should be reconstituted by a suitable Act of the Parliament, as "Environment Protection Authorities (EPAs)" at National and State levels, so as to cover all aspects of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, instead of confining to Water & Air Acts only

7) At present Central and State Pollution Control Boards, more or less function like the departments of respective governments. As a result they tend to bend backwards at times, to oblige unreasonable requests of their political bosses and superior officers. Also, they feel hesitant to initiate penal action against offending government agencies or departments. Their helplessness or inaction can be gauged from the number of interventions of the judiciary in the recent past. Therefore EPA should be made autonomous like Election Commission, CVC etc so as to ensure effective environmental protection and sustainable development by stringent enforcement of the Acts, Rules etc in force.

8)The Ministry of Environment be de-linked from Ministry of Forests and attached with Ministry of Science and Technology, if a separate Ministry cannot be formed. The Ministry should deal with policy matters only, leaving Regulation, Control, Monitoring etc to EPAs, in accordance with the Constitutional obligations and relevant Acts and Laws in force

9)Talking of environmental protection and pollution control in isolation, neglecting population growth control and land-use management, is nothing but chasing a mirage. Therefore for sustainable development, the National Policy for population growth control and well balanced Spatial Planning will have to be formulated and implemented as a forerunner

Conclusion

Which ever the party comes to power after the elections, will have to be answerable to the public, on the above and many more vital environmental issues adversely affecting their health and livelihood of people. The VOTER would like to know the views of different political parties, before HE or SHE decides to whom to vote to power.

 

Let us make “Environment Protection” the “Election Issue”

 

If We “NEGLECT NOW”, We will be Ignored for “NEXT 5 YEARS”

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Food Security Vs Food Production & Usage

        

                                            (Modified version of posting dated January 11, 2012)

 

How Much Food is needed?

Normally, the amount of food a given population- be it in a country, a region, or the world- needs is the product of two factors-numbers of people and the average food requirement per person. Unlike with many other forms of consumption, there are limits to the physical quantity of food that people can consume. The actual food consumption by the population is determined not only by its basic needs, but also by its income and dietary preferences.

This is particularly important in high-income countries, where the crops that could be consumed directly are instead fed to animals to produce eggs, meat and milk. Therefore the amount of food, a given population requires depends on food system efficiency, reflecting the extent to which food is spoiled or wasted in going from Farm to Mouth.  

Disparities in Food Consumption

It is estimated that as many as 700 million people do not eat enough to live and work at their full potential. The average African is estimated to consume less than 90% of calories needed for a healthy productive life.  On the other hand, the diets in many rich countries are so laden with animal fat as to cause high rates of heart diseases and cancer.

Moreover, the meat-intensive diets of the wealthy are known to usurp a disproportionately large share of the earth’s agriculture carrying capacity, since producing one kilogram of meat takes several kilograms of grain. If all people in the world required as much grain for their diet as the average American does, it is estimated that the global harvest would need to be about 2.5 times greater than it is today- a highly improbable scenario.

Food Production Limitations

If global population gets doubled by 2050, providing everyone with a rich and varied diet enjoyed by today’s wealthiest countries, we may require a tripling of food production. Alternatively, with improvement in food system -farm to mouth- efficiency, and adoption of a healthier diet in high-income countries, it may be possible to provide such a diet for the entire global population, with just a doubling of food production.

But even a doubling of current production could strain Earth’s ecosystems, as modern agriculture practices based on intensive use of land, energy, fertilizer and pesticides could jeopardize the health of the environment.  The key questions are whether there would be enough Land and Water to produce the amount of food needed and whether technology could keep increasing the yield of food grains from the land.

Food Demand Management 

The debate on food security focused on the potential for increasing the food production/ supply (Supply Syndrome like in all other sectors), but interestingly enough, little attention is being paid to the issue of food demand management, a cost effective, environment friendly and sustainable alternative. Like Energy & Water, Food can be conserved and the demand for it adjusted to meet human needs (not the greed) and lessen the burden that modern agriculture places on the environment. The demand for food supply can be curtailed by motivating changes of dietary preferences in rich countries, leading to food system efficiency – Farm to Mouth.

Imitation of Western Habits

India, with about 4 times the population and about one-fourth of the area of USA, cannot afford to indulge in extravagant & unsustainable food habits/ dietary practices, inherent with very poor food system efficiencies. As it is, around 42% of under-fives children in India are reported to be malnourished, despite impressive growth rate of country’s GDP.

BPL Beneficiaries & Delivery System

 As per National Food Security Act being implemented, the Below Poverty Line (BPL) Census is the basis of identifying the beneficiaries at the village level. Depending upon the parameters to classify the BPL beneficiaries, the total number could be ranging anywhere between 30% and 60% of the total population coverage under the Act.  

 Many of the well-intended welfare schemes of Govt. do not seem to have the desired impact on the targeted BPL groups, due to lack of good Delivery System at Grass-Roots Levels of Villages. Because of political patronage, the key functionaries at grass roots levels seem to have become a law onto them, practically ignoring the writ of higher officials with impunity. As a result, the schemes get derailed without any accountability.

Conclusion 

With a view to minimize inherent malady in the system, the realistic identification & recording of genuine BPL beneficiaries of food-security, ensuring good delivery system at grass roots levels & an effective supervisory and monitoring mechanism, need to be  focused. The conservation of food grains by good post-harvest practices & storage systems to prevent avoidable wastage & prevention of contamination in supply chain need to be given priority. To prevent wastage at consumer end, the German example quoted below is an Eye-Opener:

 "Order only what you can consume, to avoid wastage. Money may be yours but Resources belong to the Society. You have no right to waste resources. There are many others in the world who are facing shortage of resources.”