WAKEUP CALL
SUHAIL FAROOQ | BASARAT BASHIR
The Delhi-NCR region is grappling with a severe degradation of air quality, a predicament exacerbated by a constellation of factors, including plummeting minimum temperatures, the scourge of stubble burning, and a dearth of wind speed. This gloomy cocktail has cast a pall of apocalyptic haze, forcing residents to grapple with respiratory distress.
As a result, the region now finds itself in stage III of the Graded Response Action Plan, a stern measure to combat pollution. Even educational institutions have not been immune to the consequences, as schools were temporarily shuttered for two days to safeguard the well-being of students. Delhi tops the list of polluted cities in the world.
As the calendar turned to October 2023, data from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) painted a bleak picture of Delhi’s air quality. This year’s October air quality was reported to be the worst since 2020, and meteorologists attribute this to a lack of rain.
In a nutshell, Indian cities are topping all the other cities in population and in pollution. If we talk about Kashmir particularly, we are grappling with all kinds of pollution such as Air pollution, Water pollution, Noise pollution, Marine pollution, Soil pollution, etc.
We are currently in a situation which either can crush us or yes we can be safe but there is an urgent need of legislating laws that could control the environment’s degrading problems because only the laws are some instincts that can control human beings to control the environment.
Various environmental legislations in India are currently working to control pollution due to various activities. The Stockholm Declaration of 1972 was the first major effort to protect and conserve the human environment at the International level. The states were required to approve legislative mandate to protect and improve the environment in the concerned state.
There is an urgent need of an intensive check on these environment-related issues. CSE’s 2023 State of India’s Environment Report says India is slipping on its way to the Goals, India is not upto the mark of targeting SDG`s.
If there is a chance to tackle such environmental changes government should come up with the various conventions and such legislations and ideas that could help in totally tackling the situations in which we are currently in. The situation is different in various states, let’s suppose one state in India is tackling Air Pollution and other in Marine Pollution there is need of differentiated legislations or amend the previous legislation so that those legislations could hold more and more rigidity and strict laws.
If we talk particularly about Kashmir, Kashmir is also going through various environmental crunches just like Air Pollution as The current PM2. 5 concentrations in Jammu and Kashmir is 3.2 times above the recommended limit given by the WHO 24 hrs air quality guidelines value.
Water pollution is another major environmental issue in Jammu and Kashmir. The disposal of human and animal waste in water bodies has obstructed their flow and degraded water quality.
Shrinking of water bodies is also a concern. In a study by Srinagar’s Directorate of Environment, Ecology and Remote Sensing, Dal Lake is estimated to have shrunk from 2,547 hectares in 1971 to 1,620 hectares in 2008. According to a report by Wetland International South Asia (WISA), Wular Lake has shrunk by 45%. The water-holding capacity of the lakes in Kashmir is reducing. Depleting water sources will lead to water shortage and also affect the generation of hydroelectricity.
The melting of glaciers is another major concern for environmentalists in Jammu and Kashmir. Satellite data found that more than 1200 glaciers in the Himalayan region were melting at the rate of 35 cm in thickness each year from 2000 to 2012. Glacial melting is affecting the food, water, and energy sectors in the region. The emission of greenhouse gases and the use of fossil fuels have led to increasing temperatures and reduced snow precipitation, resulting in the melting of Himalayan glaciers.
Loss of biodiversity due to habitat destruction and animal poaching is also a major concern for environmentalists in Jammu and Kashmir. Cutting of trees and depletion of forest cover is threatening the existence of some plant species.
There are other various issues like deforestation, Industrialization, human intervention. The increase in these activities has such devastating effects on air quality, human health, climate change and on the environment. Government recently finalised Rs 33 crore Action Plan under NCAP to reduce PM 10 levels by 2025 to improve Air Quality Index in Srinagar District. But air pollution is not only confined to Srinagar so the measures to check it must be taken in other districts of J&K also.
There is an urgent need to tighten the environmental legislations in India because we the humans in 21st century are responsible of our environmental conditions and at least we can try to correct the issues of our time. So, there is an emergency need to tighten the legislations in whole of the country particularly in those states where the environmental conditions are too harsh.
In today’s world if there is some improvement in environmental degradations the credit goes to the Environmental Activists and Environmental Lawyers who are continuously on the social work to stop the environmental degradations and to inspire the other people towards the environmental activism.
In conclusion, it is imperative that existing laws are rigorously reinforced, leaving no room for any violations. There is a pressing need for a responsible executive body to enhance the effectiveness of these laws at the grassroots level. Secondly, there exists a moral obligation on the part of the public to contemplate the future of the upcoming generations. As responsible individuals, our efforts to preserve the environment ensure a secure and problem-free life for our descendants, who have an inherent right to inhabit spaces that allow for freedom and well-being.
Beyond our constitutional duties to safeguard the environment, there exists a self-imposed responsibility to contribute to environmental preservation. While an individual may not single-handedly rescue the environment, every effort counts. Encouraging and motivating others to act in the best interest of future generations is a step towards collective responsibility.
This environmental crisis is not confined to India alone; it is a global concern. The world’s rampant embrace of capitalism and peak industrialization necessitates a critical examination of existing laws related to industries.
The current laws, aimed at curbing environmental pollution, lack the necessary vigor and are not being diligently implemented. An urgent review of these loopholes is essential. Failure to educate the public on these matters would be a grave mistake. Education is a crucial tool that can be wielded to address the challenges of environmental degradation.
(Suhail Farooq is BA LLB Student at University of Kashmir and can be reached at: [email protected] and Basarat Bashir is a Junior Assistant Legal Cell at NIT Srinagar. Feedback: [email protected])
