Adequate involvement of academicians and policy makers is most essential for effective and common resources in the country, Delivering the keynote address at the inaugural ceremony of the 13th biennial conference of the International Association for the Study of the Commons (IASC), being held in the city on Monday, the Union minister put the spotlight on the environmental challenges facing the world (particularly in India) and the critical issues restraining authorities from implementing more effective laws to protect common property such as forests and water.

Keeping with the theme of the five-day conference (January 10-14), `Sustaining Commons: Sustaining our future', Ramesh listed out the three broad concerns involving common property: Climate change (which he categorised as a global concern), rivers and usage of water (a regional concern) and forest management (a local concern).

While he attributed the global issue to the lack of communication between academicians and authorities, he said it was the lack of scientific knowledge and skewed ideas that had turned rivers and forest management into serious concerns. "For long we have been hearing that one-third should be under forest cover. But what is the theology behind such a claim," Ramesh asked while stressing on the need to make a radical shift from the quantity of forest to the quality of forest for better management of the 75 million hectares of forest cover in India.

Besides these concerns, the Union minister said that environment issues were still missing from political discussions and the country's Environment Act had remained flawed, as it describes those dependent on forests for a livelihood as "criminals''. Referring to a recently revised law wherein the government has now involved more than one `institution' (as against only one so far) to manage the country's 7,500 km-long coastline, Ramesh said, "We need to allow for a multiplicity of institutions to be part of the process for better management of commons

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Sustainable Development

Environmental awareness creation

Environmental education must be encouraged where at first student become aware of environment. Then, they recognize or review the relationship between humans and nature. The students get knowledge and skills from the teachers to solve the environmental problems. The teachers motivate to develop the students attitudes to participated various environmental protection programs in favor of environment. The teacher and parents try to inculcate the knowledge about environment and develop positive and healthy attitude towards environment from the beginning of life. There is essential need to organize and conduct educational programmes focus on environmental issues, problems, attitude, towards preservation and conservation of environment.

Environmental Conservation

Conservation has been misunderstood by many as a moratorium on progress. This is in fact not true. Only sustainable development is permanent remedy to droughts, famines and the dwindling bio – diversity on this earth. Conservation implies an attitude and understanding that involve active management of the things(s) to be conserved. Four decades back, the words such as conservation and environment were little know. But to day one can find conservation messages in every newspapers, out side cutboard and books.

Sustainable Development

Environment belongs to each one of us and all of we have a responsibility to contribute towards its conservation and protection. When we take development, we should keep in mind two basic characteristic of development: (i) It should be sustained the benefits that were getting now from it should be assured to future generation.(ii) It should ethical. What ever the benefit a person or species should not harm other individuals or species.

The objective of development should not only be to raise the economic standard but also raise the social, economic, ethical and spiritual level of the people. Today, sustainable development has become a buzzword two key aspects for sustainable development are inter – generation equity and emphasizes that we hand over a life healthy and resources fil environment to our future generations.

Role of Media....

One of the most effective way of getting the message across to the largest possible audience in a country as vast and diverse like India is through mass media, including television and the English and vernacular press. Both these media have the potential of being extremely effective tools for environmental communication, but have not been sufficiently exploited for this purpose so far. Most environmental documentaries shown on TV today attract few viewers because of the academic or pedantic manner in which they are presented. Similarly, although many English newspapers are now carrying more and more features on environmental issues, they are usually superficially researched and poorly written. Vernacular papers still carry very little or no environmental news.

From the issues like pollution to the climate change, the media had been playing a vital role in creating awareness and raise issues to the pertaining topic of environment. The media has been pivotal in covering the entire country of India in raising environment issues like drought in Gujarat, Air pollution in Delhi, Ground water level depletion in Chennai and pollution from coal mines in Jharia, west Bengal. It is still to be confirmed that the role of mass media is one of the most important factors underlying the knowledge of environmental problems: This can only be true on the conditions that first, mass media are accessible to large proportions of the population, second, are spending some time on environmental issues and third, people are interested in information on ecological issues provided by the media so that they view or listen to the corresponding programs as well as read newspaper articles or other written publications dealing with environmental issues.

GUJRAT DROUGHT

Indians have lived with drought since time immemorial. Communities have built water-harvesting structures and learnt to treasure the value of every raindrop. All this has been done keeping in mind that it does not rain throughout the year and it may not rain next year. Therefore it would not be wrong to say that the Indian media has no sense of history. The media's reaction to the drought is the same as their reaction to a fire or a gas leak tragedy. They are treating it like a catastrophe, not as a process that needs to be managed. To begin with when other sections of society were talking about the drought as far back as October, the mainstream media woke up to it a few weeks ago, that too because water riots broke out in Gujrat at resulting in causalities. Something the media understands. Next came a flood of drought- related stories in the press. But the understanding of the crises was in the disasters mode and the issues that w3er4e raised were about disaster relief, almost as if they were talking about a cyclone or an earthquake. One nearly expected TV reporters to ask questions like what is rain, followed by what is drought and then talks about casualty figures.

But a drought is not a catastrophe. It can be managed. As part of this process communities try and anticipate the crisis. They do so by taking measures to conserve and harvest water use is regulated. Where the ecology is fragile, farmers desist from planting water-intensive crops like sugarcane and rise. More than 60 villages have proven that droughty is a myth and that this system works in the Alwar district of Rajasthan and the Jhabua district of Madhya Predesh. Even in this drought there is water for drinking and irrigation in the wells out there.

While it is good that the media has finally woken up to the drought they should try and cover it more as a process than as an event. There should be a post-drought6 coverage as well so that issues of water4 and the role of communities in managing it are kept under public scrutiny. We don't need drought relief but relief against drought.

Environmental Awareness

The rapid expansion and new breakthroughs in the arena of science and technology have taken humankind into a new age. The developments have both pros and cons. On the one hand, while technological developments have affected almost every aspect of human life, at the other, it has its devastating effect on the nature itself. Thus mankind faces double challenges from modern machines and from saving the nature, the mother earth. At this paradoxical juncture, the role of media, so to say, becomes very important and worthwhile. In this modern knowledge-society, media plays the role of facilitator of development, disseminator of information, and being an agent of change. Regarding the issue of environment awareness, media plays a vital role in spreading the true message. Along with bringing it into the hub of debates and discussions, it tries to suggest alternatives to people and policy-makers. First of all, the mere awareness also creates a genuine interest to probe into the exact matter. Thus, environment awareness is one of the important issues which media presents consciously and effectively to say a few things to the people.

The awareness on environment has shown multiplicity of results in the form different issues of livelihood rights, of displacement and rehabilitation, of sustainability, of pollution led damages and it's control etc. Thus, the all pervading media has really raised the awareness on environment among people.

To see how far media has attempted to raise the awareness, a case study is taken of the fortnightly-published magazine, from the Center for Science and Environment-'DOWN TO EARTH'. This magazine is solely committed to raise each and every issue regarding environment, nature and sustainable development. From the various issues of concern, in this paper, three important issues are raised. They are the rural regeneration, the drought in Gujrat, and the air pollution in Delhi.

Meter Jam in Mumbai and all the other Cities too....

Fedup by the refusals of Autodrivers and Taxi drivers Thousand of Commuters hav decided to teach a lesson to them by observing Meter Jam and boycotting this two modes of public transport. Not only in Mumbai people over other Cities are also supporting Meter Jam.

This Meter Jam campaign is a brain child of Advertising professionals and is being also supported on Facebook.

Many commuters face problems everyday due to the resfusal of Auto and Taxi drivers. Even they dont consider old people and blow them off.

Posters have been design and people are been made aware , their signature is been taken,Many have come in the support of this campaign.

This is a good initiative taken " They should be thought a lesson".........

Save Narmada Save People....................

A Narmada Diary.........

Excerpts from "A Village Smiles" is a government documentry.A 1919 on state controlled.It is a joint venture of ( Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan,Madya Pradesh).Sardar sarovar Narmada ghati Pariyojana together built dam on narmada river.

In Maharashtra Advasis (original inhabitants)celebrate Holi Festival, 10050 official,37 hector of land and many people and if the dam is built many people will drown.

Gigantic Narmada will be the cause of it. It will displace many people. People are protesting against it.People are opposing it. Baba Amte in 1990 protested in Gujarat. People have right to live.People question the functioning of governmentBusinessman, Politicians said it isd necessary to build a dam for progress.People gave naras also.Medha Patkar was the one who strongly opposed it and supported the protestors.She worked hard for it.Prathiba Sharma also protested. Because of it government agreed to give compensation. Manibeli village was a symbol of struggle. Government sand police to shift people. But people were adamant People said "WE MAY SLIP BUT WE WONT SHIFT"... People were badly beaten up and even jailed and injured, even women also were badly injured.

In November- 1992 - World Bank President came to Mumbai, Medha Patkar and protestors went to meet himbut he refuse and people opposed him. Police assult activist and injured them and finally in March 1993 World Bank withdrew the budget people celebrated it.

In 1993 in Mumbai Medha Patkar protested and guided the moment, she also went on hunger strike and many strikers were arrested and government promised the complete review of the project.

But there was no progress and no measures taken. Jal Samarpan was declared several activist including Medha Patkar were suppose to jump in Narmada river.Many people gave their life. Issue was debatable Medha Patkar won the long struggle.

Medha Patkar even had talks with the Union Minister of Environment Kamal Nath. But there was no conclusion drawn from it. As the talks remained half way.

But Gujarat is united on Narmada issue.

And the struggle for "Narmada Bachao Andolan" still continues............