JOIN HANDS : SAVE MOTHER EARTH

Murari Prasad Sahu(PGT Biology) Administrative Incharge,VEI

Equipped with his five senses, man explores the universe around him and calls the adventure Science. ~Edwin Powell Hubble, 1954
A: "How did you get here?" B: "Well, basically, there was this little dot, right? And the dot went bang and the bang
expanded. Energy formed into matter, matter cooled, matter lived, the amoeba to fish, to fish to fowl, to fowl to frog, to frog to mammal, the mammal to monkey, to monkey to man and !!!!!!! When Darwin proclaimed his famous Survival of the Fittest doctrine , little did he realize a species the Homo sapiens- would interpret his argument as being heavily loaded in favour of human species to the extent that nothing else deserved to survive on this planet. But actually he meant the species that best fits its natural environment had the best chances of survival. We humans have proved to be unique in the sense that we supposed to make ourselves felt as masters of all environments and that no other species deserves to live on this planet. Human beings have justified that from the onslaught against forests that boast of millions of species of trees and plants, and the competition to destroy habitats that are so crucial for the survival of innumerable species of animals , some exceedingly rare ? To fulfill their boundless greed human beings continue to plunder and loot the forests causing deforestation and poaching of endangered animals . India a land of billion plus human beings and half a billion livestock stands as treasure trove of natural wealth having 8% of the worlds diversity of life forms. The alarming rate of population growth and over-consumption of natural resources can be seen all over. Pollution leading to degradation of water, air and land; felling of trees and other vegetation to make way for urbinisation, greater human consumption for oil, minerals, timber and energy sources etc. The result drought, flood, cyclone, earthquake, epidemic, famine and most importantly green house effect and global warming . So where are we moving towards? Definitely not towards a safe future. About eighty years ago the world was speaking about sustainable development and then come the term sustainable consumption but the national and international community never responded the things . Though the second term has still its validity with the third of its kind sustainable use of natural resources. If we go some years back, the global trends in

various fields are in horrible state. Poverty, social and gender inequalities at its top. The gap between the rich and the poor is increasing day by day. About 800 million people sleep hungry every day. One million people suffer from micronutrient deficiency. It is predicted that by 2050, as much as 42% of the worlds population will live in nations which will not have sufficient freshwater stock to meet their combined needs of agriculture, industry and domestic use. The most worrisome point is that the consumption and use patterns in the developing world are blindly following those in the developed world. The affluent population in developing countries tends to adopt the lifestyle of rich countries, which is exemplified by profuse use of all kinds of gadgets, luxury goods and automobiles. The greatest concern now is rise in the population, decline in forest cover and of freshwater availability and also tremendous increase in the demand for primary energy. If the current scenario will continue than, the ecosystems that provide us with natural resources could well collapse well before the world runs out of nonrenewable resources. So whats next !!! !!! !!! We have already travelled so many one way roads of so called developed from where it is almost impossible to return but we must slowdown right now, minimizing the use of natural resources and emissions of wastes and pollutants over the life cycle. Citizens must now be prepared to re-examine their lifestyles. Sustainable use of natural resources and sustainable consumption should be a peoples movement. Only people can change the patterns of use and consumption in many ways, be they consumers, householders, workers or the voters. We will need fundamental changes in human behaviour to develop community based strategies and also need a public awareness campaign that can highlight the relationship between quality of life with use & consumption pattern. The concern for sustainable use of resources may also refer to preserve and protect the space, the oceans, the fresh water resources, the forest cover of our planet, the flora and fauna and most importantly the dignity of humankind. Though we know that the struggle is long and difficult and also the strong and affluent will be hard to convince to change mindset still, people are there who can join us in creating a consensus to make others understand that pure water, clean air, virgin forests are all a part of our natural capital that we must preserve at any cost. We belong to the nature not the nature to us as a whole ; lets join hands together to create a movement so that we with our greed do not tamper the mother earth and also the future generations to come. Let harmony prevails with the nature for a better tomorrow.