NEW DELHI: At one level the city government is preparing a comprehensive plan to combat climate change and at another, civic society is taking matters in its own hands, calling the government's measures so far to be unsystematic with a misplaced sense of priority. Environmentalists and activists have come together to develop a vision document on Delhi's environment till 2025.
The first meeting concluded that for wholesome development, Delhi needs to look at social justice. Dr Amita Baviskar, associate professor of Sociology at the Institute of Economic Growth strongly advocated for it.
Making a strong case against 'bourgeois environmentalism', she said, "We are living in a city which mimics segregation earlier seen during South Africa's apartheid phase. Thousands of people were relocated from the Yamuna banks in an effort to clean the embankment but the city is neither cleaner nor greener. The working class is paying a price after being moved to resettlement colonies with no basic amenities and travelling three hours to get to their workplace. The government has a misplaced sense of priority for which it has consensus from the middle class. They want a world class city like Singapore but not its environmental or social infrastructure."
The point about incorporating the lower rung and working classes was also made in the context of transport infrastructure. The city has added more than 10,000 km of roads and 60 flyovers in the last 10 years. However, no space has been dedicated to either walking or cycling, especially when 35% of Delhiites own bicycles.
Rajendra Ravi, director, Institute for Democracy and Sustainability said, "When the BRT was made, those opposing it claimed that value of the time of a person driving a car was more than that of a poor person and so cars should be prioritized over buses. This is absolutely unconstitutional and the government should focus on shifting from personal to public transport."Suhas Borker, founder member, Green Circle of Delhi said, "To get out of the 'ad hocism mode' led by city politicos in our approach to environmental issues , we have to bring about a mindset change with equity, sustainability, transparency and strong civil society participation. Without political will we cannot handle them.
The need for macro level planning in the matter of land use was considered essential. Dr Mahesh N Buch, chairman of the National Centre for Human Settlements and Environment and Manoj Misra, convenor of the Yamuna Jiye Abhiyaan said in the absence of proper planning, the city has been expanding in a unsystematic manner. The Yamuna bed has been violated in the desire to concretise more area.
