“Cry, my beloved earth” (Part 2)

The consequences are frightening and bone chilling. We feel inadequate and hapless. But like always at the end of the tunnel there is bright light. People have woken up to the ugly facts of ecological degradation and have stated to act. There is an international movement called the Green Peace, which is very active in this regards. Green peace based in Germany is a very vocal ecological group, which educates the people about the bad effects of tampering with Mother earth. Their stringent opposition of nuclear reactors has earned them worldwide admiration.

In India we have had pioneers threading the path of ecological protection. The person who comes to mind is Sunderal Bahuguna of the “Chipko movement”. Sunderlal Bahuguna propagated the concept of being friendly to the trees. He rightly said that trees are mans’ best friends. If you cut one tree you are cutting off generations of friends. To emphasize his point Bahuguna and his followers would hug the tree and would not allow anybody to cut it down. And the recent battle of Narmada Bachoo Angolan is another case in point where a Non government organization is battling everybody including the government to protect the interest of the fragile river eco- system and the lifes of the native tribes whose lives are being threatened by the building of the Sardar Sarover Dam.

So what can we do? We form the silent majority of the people who does not do anything and we don’t care. This attitude has to change. Ecological degradation can’t be no longer their (read western countries) problem. It is our problem and we better act. The action can’t be postponed. Let us voice our displeasure about degradation. Lets us stop using plastic bags. Let us educate the others the importance of maintaining the correct ecological balance. Let us support the organizations fighting for the protection of the fragile ecology of Mother Nature. If it is possible let us join these pressure groups.

An attempt should be made to discuss these issues threadbare and force our elected representatives and the government to enact legislations to protect the nature’s balance. And as vigilant descendents of Mother Nature let us be vigilant and see that our government actually implements the legislations that are enacted. These are not actions that will give us any applause and recognition. These are bare necessities so that future generations should not put the blame on our doorstep saying “ that was the century that completely destroyed the ecological balance of Mother Nature”.

All these have to done with the aim of “ think global, act local”. If all of us act responsibly locally, then the results will be felt at a global level. The recouping capacity of Mother Nature is truly amazing. Given time and adequate protection, she will be ready to serve mankind forever. As we end let us remember the words of Milton, I quote “ they also serve, those who stand and stare” Unquote. Those are people like you, me and all of us.