With India?s turbocharged economy revved up for an exciting ride ? the country is expected to see a growth of 9% in the current fiscal ? the demand for natural resources is bound to accelerate. As diverse sections of the populace compete for scarce resources, fault lines are emerging in civil society. It seems that on one side of the conflict for resources is the need for development through unfettered industrial growth to fulfill the aspirations of a billion people. On the other side are India?s depleting resources, threatened biodiversity, worsening pollution, and the excluded sections of society.
But is this green debate all black and white? And are these really two different sides?
The environmental issue is not so much a challenge associated with the ecology as a problem related to our politics, policy and governance. All economic activity, industrial and agricultural, requires the consumption of vital resources such as land, water, fuel, and minerals. Economic activity is essential to generate the growth that can lift India?s people out of the debilitating state of poverty and empower them to attain their potential. Thus, it is inconceivable that anyone could be opposed to it.
However, the negative effects of growth on environment can be mitigated to a great extent if the resources are used judiciously and distributed transparently. To achieve this, we need enlightened policies and their effective execution. Instead, India?s environmental issues are further polluted by ambiguous policies that leave plenty of room for ad-hoc decision-making and corruption. Without a lucid and transparent policy, land becomes a largesse distributed for pecuniary and political benefits, instead of being treated as the precious resource that it is for inclusive development.
The issue is not one of industry versus environment, development versus ecology, or growth versus sustainability. Rather, the issue is the absence of well-defined environmental and land use policies that can nurture the environment while enabling growth.
Consider the case of special economic zones (SEZs) which in theory could help India?s development by generating employment, attracting investment and upgrading technologies. However, the SEZ policy has been plagued by irresponsible planning and an inadequate land acquisition law. There are 114 SEZs operating in India and more than 500 SEZs have been formally approved.
With the government able to acquire land without a transparent price determination mechanism and making half-hearted attempts at rehabilitation, conflicts over land use are bound to arise, defeating the very purpose for which SEZs were formulated. With the lofty ideal lost in the maze of ad-hoc policy and questionable practices, many appear to be turning into real estate projects.
Whatever growth India has witnessed has been in spite of its infrastructure, not because of it. Public-private partnership (PPP) can be a viable and efficient model with which to improve the country?s dismal infrastructure, with the private and public sectors drawing on each other?s expertise. The Planning Commission estimates that PPP will account for 30% of the estimated $1.5 trillion infrastructure investment required in the 11th and 12th Plans. Currently, there are 415 PPP projects being implemented in various parts of the country worth about $48 billion. However, this development will be stalled without clear policies if the government does not identify and define land use to assure that the private partner gets the promised returns. The NICE road near Bangalore was taken up as a PPP project and land was allotted but flip-flops over the project have caused expensive delays. Similarly, the delayed government action over Lavasa throws up questions on why clearance was given if there were problems in the first place ? and why did it take so long for someone to wake up and start asking questions when much of the construction has already been completed?
Clearly, with the intense population pressure on arable land and both agriculture and industries competing for this resource, we urgently need to lay down transparent and water-tight policies to minimise environmental impact and optimise inclusive growth.
We do not need to reinvent the wheel to create such a framework. Most countries in the world must balance their development requirements against environmental restrictions. We need to examine their success stories and evolve our model leveraging their best practices. Take a look at Malaysia, for example. This South-East Asian nation, though primarily agricultural, is industrialising quickly. Industries in Malaysia must provide an environment impact assessment for certain prescribed activities, especially those that are high in impact. These include construction of airports, dams and man-made lakes, and new townships. 60 percent of the country?s land is dedicated as a permanent forest reserve.
Brazil, an emerging economy similar to India, has been striving to protect the Amazonian rainforest from agriculturists and miners. The government has expanded protected areas in the Amazon and implemented new environmental policies. More than 62 natural reserves have been established in the Amazon. The Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Amazon Deforestation intends to improve the monitoring of the deforestation process. Monitoring and control of illegal deforestation have been intensified. The Public Forest Management Law of 2006 encourages sustainable development. As a means of strengthening the forest-based economy in the Amazon basin, the government is creating Sustainable Forest Districts to stimulate forestry.
Through the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, the Australian government seeks to protect the environment, conserve biodiversity, promote ecologically sustainable development and provide a streamlined national environmental assessment and approvals process. Land owners, developers, farmers, mining companies, and government agencies need to refer their proposals to the federal minister to see whether a project needs to undergo a federal assessment process. All referrals to the department are published on the website to give the public an opportunity to provide comment.
There are several such success stories around the developed as well as developing world as other nations grapple with the same issues. Many of these countries are learning that development and sustaining the environment need not be antithetical. After all, both are vital to any country?s future. A cogent and lucid policy for land use that is implemented with transparency can help India meet these twin goals.