An excerpt from "Deaf to the Countdown" by H.E Gopalkrishna Gandhi, Governor, W Bengal

How long can we live in denial of imminent annihilation?

"The year 2020 is a mere 11 years away. The end of this century is just nine decades away. Will our grandchildren and our great grandchildren see it? We have no reason to feel assured. We have every reason to worry. And great need, an existential need, in fact, to act. And yet, far from worrying and very far from acting, we are in denial.......
…………………………We, in India, take just pride in our exciting space venture, Chandrayaana. That huge undertaking is important for us. But in the scheme of life, while there is such a thing as the important, there is also such a thing as the urgent. When, from our mountains to our oceans, our terais to our beaches, we see human interventions scooping the soul out of our heritage, when plastic garbage grows like an indestructible fungus over every inch of public space, when cement structures grow like pustules over public and private space, when our Himalayan forests struggle, when our glaciers shrink, when our rivers grow low or thick with silt and pollutants, our aquifers begin to dry and die, and the air we breathe is laden with toxic gases, we need, alongside Chandrayaana, with equal magnificence and equal success, a Prithviyaana, which includes a Himayaana, a Vanayaana, a Jalayaana and a Vaayuyaana as well.

More importantly, we need to modify the Mahayaana of mindless growth propelled by bulk consumers of energy and fuel into a Hinayaana of ecological intelligence and human responsibility."

H.E Gopalkrishna Gandhi
Governor,
West Bengal


Comment by Praful Rao

The full article is available here.
Photo credit : Rabin Rai, Darjeeling