Views on A Plan to Save the Hills - Link Ecopreneurship to Watershed Concept

Views on A Plan to Save the Hills – Anil P Joshi on 13^th Sept., 2013

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Dear Editor,

Please find hereunder some reflections on the article by Dr Anil P Joshi.

Thanks and regards,

Hari Raj

Link Ecopreneurship to Watershed Concept

(Reference: A Plan to Save the Hills – Anil P Joshi on 13^th Sept., 2013; The Times of India, New Delhi edition, page-12)

Mistakes can be corrected but blunders can seldom be reversed, and that is what happened at Kedar-Badri and the entire range of Uttarakhand Himalaya this monsoon (A Plan to Save the Hills by Dr. Anil P Joshi on 13^th Sept.). Fairly speaking, what happened in this region was beyond our imaginary (and technical capabilities) proportions. This could be equated to what happened in Odisha cyclone or Bhuj earthquake, in recent past. The Himalaya is ecologically characterized as a ‘fragile and delicately poised system’. So we need to live by this practical truth for all ground level interventions in this region. But, at the same time its fragility doesn’t means that it is ‘vulnerable’. Rather, ‘it is made vulnerable’ by the lack of ecological-literacy amongst our development planners and executioners. Thus, looking at the prevalent model of development, ‘preserving the hills’ is ‘a mountainous task’.

               The ‘Ecopreneurship Model (EM)’ stands a good chance, in theory! As we have seen the free fall of all economic models (except for the Char Dham Yatra – an exploitative and consumptive one) due to lack of closed chain mechanism, since creation of Uttarakhand state a dozen years back! I fear the lack of back and forth-value based linkage creation in ‘ecological entrepreneurship’ can land EM too as a non-starter. Tagging EM to MGNREGA too won’t work as the exclusivity of the Ecopreneurship is far and beyond the Center’s flagship programmes potential outreach.

What is required is a wider and all inclusive debate and consultations (especially the valley and village stakeholders) to work out an effective EM. Of the various options, what is required is adopting a ‘Watershed Based Approach’, thereby addressing the ‘uniqueness of closed ecosystems’ of each of the river valley and its tributaries, exclusively. These are to be assessed and managed locally to make a closed linkage of flow of goods and services, be it forests, livestock, agriculture, water resources, biodiversity. And thereafter linking one valley to the other, thus creating a chain of intra and inter dependence and sustenance for the human settlements dotting the Uttarakhand Himalayan terrain.

 

~ Hari Raj Singh

______________________________________________________________________________

Hari Raj Singh

B.Sc.Ag&A.H.(Hons.); M.Sc.(Soil Sc.); C.E.S.; C.D.M.

Development Consultant & Subject Specialist (Watershed / Disaster Mgt.)   

Contacts: 110, Indira Nagar Colony, (P.O. New Forest)

                   DEHRA DUN. 248 006. Uttarakhand. INDIA

                   Tel: 91 +135 +2768962; 0 941 2768962(cell)

                   Email: harirajsingh@hotmail.com

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