Saving our forests and green belts

To

Hon'ble G.N Sinha

The Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests,

Department of Forests and Wildlife,

Govt of NCT Delhi,

Vikas Bhawan, IP Estate

New Delhi 

Sir,

It is with interest I read in the Hindustan Times dated 11.5.2014, a book review on, 'An introduction to Delhi Ridge' edited by you, and brought out by the Forest Department of Delhi. It is extremely encouraging and indeed reassuring that our forests remain safe in hands (forest department) and the awareness being generated to protect what remains of the forested areas from the pressures of urbanization.

 

Whilst high profile areas like the Delhi Ridge and well known parks such as Lodhi Gardens or Nehru Park remain in the forefront of attention, history teaches us Delhi was really a forest with some habitation in localized pockets, largely in the Red Fort /Jama Masjid area. However, with shifting of the British India's capital to Delhi, and the creation of 'New Delhi', the systematic destruction of Delhi's pristine forests began. Over the last century we have reduced Delhi's forests to the size of urban parks, and now have the dubious distinction of being called 'city forests', or 'shar-ik van'.

We have just begun to take baby steps to stymie the destruction of our ridge and other urban green areas, the journey ahead however remains is a long and arduous one. The demands of urbanization are immense; the soft targets in the city’s expansion are the green belts and forests. Our challenge is, to bring about a harmonious balance between the advances of concrete jungles on green jungles; and given the fact our existence depends upon the existence of forests and green areas, preservation and expansion of such green buffer zones needs to be given a very high priority. With increased carbon dioxide levels in urban areas, green belts and urban forests are our carbon sinks to replenish oxygen in the atmosphere, and aquifers of our underground water bodies. We must worry that we aren't moving fast enough to reverse the tide of green destruction, simultaneously constructing the city at a furious pace.

To protect our forests is to protect our very existence, and this is the essence of our lives, nature and man's harmonious co existence. This task is just too great for the Forest Department to carry alone on its shoulders, and needs the involvement of society at large.

Since society and community involvement has become an absolute necessity, I would therefore venture to suggest we follow a well tried and tested advertising model known as AIDA, an acronym for Awareness, Interest, Desire, Action

.

As this inverted graph suggests, spreading awareness is the most work intensive phase of the campaign, a great deal of the  effort has to be put in at this stage; as awareness grows, it lead to interest and desire, followed by action.

Can we interpolate the AIDA model to the management of forest and green buffer zones? The answer is in the affirmative, the more awareness created, will lead to interest, followed by desire to do what needs to be done, and finally fructifying into action.

Since awareness is the key driver, and if we define this as a major objective, the target groups to be reached out to raise awareness levels need to be defined.  The first and most obvious choice of the target audience in urban areas to raise awareness would Gen Next, our next generation whom will carry this mission forward. The energy of the youth is well known, to achieve this, the education system, both formal and informal would have to be harnessed, and this could be the topic of our next discussion.  

Further, specific environmental groups such as Kalpavriksha that brought awareness in the ‘70’s on the need to protect the ridge, showed us how citizens participation and involved in such an endeavour could bring fundamental awareness and protection of green areas. Whilst now many groups and movements are rendering yeoman service and breaking through barriers and stereotypes, their efforts would bring a synergistic whirlwind if their combined zeal was brought together on the same page. Such would be the explosive effect, as the organisation Greenpeace has achieved in the West. 

In conclusion, the effort to preserve protect and grow back our forests therefore is not just limited to the Forest Department, but requires a deeper involvement of communities and society at large. Whilst we laud the Forest Department for holding out against all odds to preserve the Ridge, we need to strengthen your hands by joining in as a movement.

Yours Faithfully

Rajeev Suri

Friends of Defence Colony

D 68 Defence Colony, New Delhi 110024

Mobile 9810304580

Date 20.05.2014