Dr.Banarsi Lal and Dr. Vikas Tandon
Environment is one of the most important pillars of sustainable development. There is the need to establish a sustainable development process in rural India. Environmental aspect assumes great significance in growing deforestation, soil erosion, land degradation, water pollution, biodiversity loss and the like which continue to worsen economic development in rural India. The common property resources which are mostly natural must be protected for overall growth of the rural areas. The natural resources should be protected for overall growth of the rural areas. Such efforts not only lead to optimum utilization of natural resources but also generate more employment for the rural people. This initiative requires people’s participation. For instance, afforestation activities cannot be successful without the help of local communities. The relationship between development and environment is well established. This requires the awareness on environmental issues.
Environmental quality is an integral part of development. Without environmental ethics development is simply undermined. Natural resources are the wealth of any nation. Presently they are facing environmental hazards due to many reasons. Sustainable development is focused on any kind of betterment that should not harm the environment so that the well being of future generations is guaranteed and the harmonious relationship environment and development is sustained. The process of sustainable development tries to build social and economic progress satisfying the needs and values of the social groups without foreclosing future options. Rio-Earth Summit (1992) highlights the view that socio-economic development and environment protection are interdependent and mutually reinforcing processes. Recently, the healthy rural environment has encountered divergent environmental hazards as an addition to their existing issues of social and economic hardships. Such threats badly affect the local community which is the impetus behind research for alternative sources such as cultivation in marginal lands. It constitutes a growing class of environment refugees. Sustainable rural development is felt as a necessary intervention to fight against poverty, unemployment and other complicated problems in rural areas. Sustainable rural development can promote growth and equity simultaneously and also promote the development of democratic process at the grass root level by creating awareness on social forestry, soil conservation, population control, protection of tanks, rural energy management, biodiversity, popularization of eco-friendly activities etc. Sustainable rural development on the one hand benefits local people and safeguards the flora and fauna of a particular region on the other. At this stage common property resources are important but they are being neglected. They should be protected and organized through people’s participation. Common property resources can generate more employment opportunities in rural areas. The sustainability of development for the rural people should dexterously and lucratively aim at motivating the people to get involved in community action and to ensure their participation in diverse and numerous environmental protection and optimum utilization of natural resources. Committed involvement of each and everyone is expected in this process. Thus, rural development will obviously lead to an overall growth of rural areas.
People’s participation plays an inevitable role in driving the fruits of development schemes. It is an important instrument to monitor the officials and contractors on the one hand and augment the empowerment of the local bodies on the other. It increases the worthiness of the project by means of achieving a steady and balanced growth from within the best use of natural resources. Environmental issues cannot be solved unless the local people take part in it. Their participation will help in promoting wildlife conservation, afforestation and also in employment generation. Local people skill and manpower are needed to deal with the aftermath of environmental disasters. The problems confronted in the rural areas do not involve huge amount of money but the fullest involvement of the people with a commitment to solve the problems. For instance, sanitation is a chronic problem in rural areas but it cannot be solved by the various programmes of the government alone. It can also be solved by the people. Afforestation and arresting of deforestation can be carried with the help of local people. Protection of environment is mainly in the hands of the people. People’s participation is imperative need.
Environment protection is an essential part of development. Without adequate environment protection, development is useless. It has been estimated that by 2030 food production will need to double and industrial output and energy use will increase three times in the world and five times in the developing nations. This growth can bring the risk of appalling environmental damage. It can also bring with it better environment protection, clean air water and eradication of poverty. Environmental damage affects the present and future human welfare. It affects human health and reduces agricultural productivity. Some problems are associated with the lack of economic development, inadequate sanitation, clean water and air pollution from biomass burning. Illegal cutting of forests is a matter of great concern. The lack of appropriate technology for maximum utilization of the raw materials, poor silvicultural practices, low recovery, low budgetary provision for forest operations have all hampered effective management. As a result fuel wood, timber, pole wood and carving wood are being exploited at unsustainable levels. Ecological degradation of wetlands together with pollution has resulted in the loss of flora and fauna. The high amount of fertilizers and other inputs required in agriculture for increasing the productivity has led to the degradation of the environment. Despite decades of warning about pollution and efforts to control it, people are still being exposed to toxic pollutants. Pollution from agricultural land caused by leaching of nitrogen fertilizers has been detected in the ground water in many areas. In Harayana, for example, some well water is reported to have nitrate concentration ranging from 114 mg. / litre to 1800 mg. /litre far above the national standard 45 mg. /litre. Government should monitor and implement policies to reduce pollution and environment degradation and safeguard the natural system that supports renewable resources. Action should be taken for achieving a sustainable future.
Environment protection is possible through effective participation of the people. It has been observed that unless the people are put at the core of any development activity, the relationship among the environmental development ceases to exist. It has been studied that people’s participation is the most determining factor of biodiversity conservation. People living around the Periyar Tiger Reserve of Kerala can be taken as an example. It is not only taking care of the decentralized government control over forests but also ensuring the biodiversity conservation a reality. The participatory approach to environmental protection can be strengthened through the decentralized planning which provides opportunity for the rural communities to effectively participate in the development process provided the environmental issues are made a part of local plans. It has been observed that the rural people’s level of environmental awareness and participation is important with respect to environmental endeavors. All the stakeholders should understand the present environmental crisis and find out suitable solutions to tackle this awful situation. The dictum, prevention is better than cure is more related to the present day’s environmental issues as it is directly proportional to man’s survival problems. Sustainable rural development hints at the rational use of scarce resources with the support of people. A multifarious strategy needs to be formulated to solve the rural problems through development process and to protect the environment through community participation. A renowned environmentalist Sh. Anil Agarwal proposed a seven point environment agenda for India. One of them is “Rural development should become holistic, at the same time, village ecosystem should be protected.” It will help to an evergreen revolution in agriculture where productivity can be increased without any harm to social and economic fabric. Thus, the holistic approach towards rural development has to be taken into account which includes amelioration of the quality of life of the rural people through appropriate exploitation of natural resources. It is indeed a silver lining for rural development
The writers are: Dr.Banarsi Lal, Asstt. Professor and Dr. Vikas Tandon, Assoc. Professor, KVK Reasi (Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology-Jammu).
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