Land Slide in God's Country: Are we responsible for Nature's (God) Fury?

 

Kerala, “God's own country”, with Wayanad as one of those idyllic tourist destinations, has been struck by a massive landslide, due to torrential rains. It was in the wee hours of early morning on 30 July, when massive landslides struck Mundakkai Kerala’s Wayanad District after the heavy rains had lashed the state of Kerala. Desperate scenes of human suffering have flooded the news and social media with rescue teams from Defence and other governmental and nongovernmental organisations trying their best to rescue people by reaching the destroyed houses and frantically searching for missing people. The reports of the death toll vary and range from 143 to 153, as I write this post with people still missing and feared to be buried under the debris of fallen buildings. Taking to X the Government of Kerala (CMO) announced a state holiday today and declared a two-day mourning period - starting today.

Can this tragedy of landslides be attributed only to nature's fury, because of the torrential rains which have lashed the district of Wayanad? May not be. It could be a combination of both nature and human greed which has led us to this disaster. Asserting his views on the eco-sensitive nature of the western ghats that have witnessed this disaster, the leading ecologist of India, Prof Madhav Gadgil, has blamed the government for ignoring ecological recommendations. The Hindu reported that; Mr. Gadgil criticised the State government for not adhering to the panel’s guidelines designed to prevent such disasters amid extreme climate changes.

Most ecological experts agree with the angst expressed by Prof Madhav Gadgil. They attribute the devastation of floods and landslides to the extensive quarrying, mining, mushrooming of high-rises on the hillside as part of tourism, and illegal encroachment of forestland by people who they term as environmental fundamentalists. We must hold these people, supported by political parties – cutting across party lines, who must be held responsible for the catastrophic consequences. They don’t understand the value of coexistence with nature. A closer look at the regions impacted by this unprecedented catastrophe shows that they are majorly part of the Western Ghats and most of these places are classified as ecologically sensitive zones (ESZs) by the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP), also known as the Gadgil Committee. 

The WGEEP panel under the chairmanship of Prof Madhav Gadgil, ecologist and founder of the Centre for Ecological Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, commissioned by the Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India, painstakingly crafted their monumental report addressing some of the ecological consequences in the very regions that are now adversely affected by the landslide in subject. Prof Gadgil, in his preface to the report, says “the report embodies among other things (i) categorisation of the Western Ghats into three zones of varied ecological sensitivity, based upon careful analysis done by WGEEP, (ii) broad sectoral guidelines for each of these zones, and (iii) a broad framework for the establishment of the Western Ghats Ecology Authority”.

This report was submitted to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests under the UPA Government in 2011. The report recommended that the whole of Western Ghat be divided into 3 zones and that no new mining licenses should be given in zones 1 and 2. It further said that the Government must stop all existing mines in Zone 1 by 2016 and it must also stop illegal mining activities immediately. Unfortunately, no action was taken on the report since the recommendations in the report were considered a bitter pill, which no Government would wish to swallow, particularly because the implementation of the report would hurt the powerful mining lobby of South West India with deep pockets and high-level political connections. Interestingly but not surprisingly, this mining body is patronised by both the leading political parties in Kerala – the ruling LDF and the opposition, UDF and therefore Madhav Gadgil's report was not acted upon and gathered dust and the ministry also did not release this report to the media for public discussion. An RTI activist from Kerala learned of this report and sought the report from the union Ministry under the RTI. The government did not furnish the information citing security concerns. Undeterred, the applicant agitated the matter right up to the CIC and finally, the CIC ordered the government to make the report public, which the Ministry earnestly followed. 

The Gadgil committee report sparked much controversy in Kerala, especially as the then-opposition CPI-M accused the report of being too environment-centric. This resulted in no action by the Government. The Supreme Court intervened in the matter and directed the government to act on the report. The result was the formation of another committee, the Kasturirangan Committee, which was set up to review the Gadgil Committee report and suggest changes so that the states can implement the recommendations of the Gadgil report, keeping in mind the welfare of the inhabitants as well.

Kasturirangan led-High Level Working Report (HLWG) was submitted in April 2013 to the Ministry of Environment. The Ecologists say the HLWG is a dilution of the Gadgil report and, therefore, unacceptable. There were agitations and protests even against the Kasturirangan report by quarry owners and farmers, especially in the Idukki and Wayanad districts, the very districts that are now worst affected. Political leaders and mining companies too joined hands to fight against the report resulting in hardly any action on either of the reports.

It is worthwhile to note that there are a few key differences between the Gadgil and the Kasturirangan report. Prominent among them is the extent of the area that should be awarded protection as an eco-sensitive zone (ESZ). The Gadgil panel identified the entire Ghats as ESZ. However, the Kasturirangan panel used a different method, primarily because of the expertise of Dr Kasturirangan in the field of finer remote sensing technology with which he was very closely associated. Kasturirangan report, accordingly, removed cash crop plantations like rubber, agricultural fields, and settlements from ESZ. The Kasturirangan report suggested an ESZ area of 37 percent of the Western Ghats (still a massive 60,000 ha), which was much less than the 137,000ha proposed by Gadgil. However, what is alarming is that even after more than a decade of the report of Dr. Kasturi Rangan, neither of the reports has been completely implemented on the ground. Experts may debate on the two reports but what may be of essence is that we should learn lessons from this disaster and take corrective actions.

What may have been the consequences of the torrential rains, had the Gadgil report or even Dr Kasturirangan's Reports been acted upon is something which each of us is free to envisage and apply our minds to such thoughts. Well, my guess is as good as most of my friends. Professor Gadgil himself however feels the current catastrophe is man-made, which he emphatically has stated. It is of interest to note that both reports highlight the ecological sensitivity of the region, which is now struck by a landslide.

Today we witness a highly polarised polity who are bickering on every subject, and the divide is so vividly evidenced in the parliament, which is engaged in an animated budget discussion, which looks more like a political mudslinging match rather than a place for debate with great scholarship.  But strangely, when it comes to taking action and implementing either the Madhav Gadgil Report or Dr Kasturi Rangan’s report, there seems to be unanimity across party lines, and no one wants to bite this bullet to annoy their vote bank and the mighty environmental fundamentalists – the mining lobby.  

Six years ago, a similar situation played out in Kerala in August 2018, and the resultant floods caused a loss of more than 300 people but then we seem to have learned no lessons, and the UDF government, which is in power now and so also during the August 2016 flood, must not shy away from acting on the reports any longer and the NDA government must extend all possible assistance and support to Pinnarayi Vijayan’s  government not only to tide over the current disaster but also in implementing at least the Kasturi Rangan’s report to avoid any further disasters   

Let us hope that someone is listening.

Until then let us all put our hands together to raise in appreciation of the rescue teams who are doing extraordinary service to the nation.

Jai Hind

Wishing Prof Jayant Narlikar a very happy 86th birthday - 19 July, 2024.

Dr. Jayant Vishnu Narlikar, an internationally acclaimed astrophysicist & cosmologist who has made significant contributions to the field of theoretical astrophysics, particularly in the study of cosmology, black holes, and the formation of galaxies, turned 86, yesterday - 19 July, 2024. Narlikar is famously known as a leading expert who defended the Steady State Cosmology against the more Popular Big-Bang Cosmology. I like to take this opportunity to wish Dr Jayant Narlikar a very happy birthday (belated) and pray for his good health. 

 Dr Narlikar besides being a astrophysicist and a scientist of international repute was an extraordinary science communicator, which made him a role model for the science communicator fraternity in India, including yours truly. He was a prolific science writer in English and Marathi and also in Hindi. He served as the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Nehru Science Centre, Mumbai and as the Member of the Governing Body of NCSM, an apex body of science centres and science museums, which administers most of the science centres and museums in India. The Nehru Science Centre, Mumbai therefore had innumerable opportunities to host Dr Narlikar at the centre not only for the meetings but also for lectures and interactions with students and public, a glimpse of which are seen in the images that accompany this birthday tribute to Dr Narlikar. Befittingly, one of the innumerable awards that Dr Narlikar received was the coveted UNESCO Kalinga Award, which is given to the leading science communicators of the world. 

 Dr Narlikar while receiving the prestigious UNESCO Kalinga Award in 1996 had articulated the reasons for his interest in science communication He had said; “I enjoy doing research in astronomy and astrophysics. My research supervisor Sir Fred Hoyle, who was himself is a Kalinga Awardee, was a successful science communicator i.e. he was able to communicate what he was doing to the layman in a very simple and easy manner. I thought that he was an example that I should follow”. 

Jayant Narlikar was born on July 19, 1938 in Kolhapur to his illustrious parents - Vishnu Vasudeva Narlikar, his father, a well-known mathematician, and his mother, Sumati Narlikar, a Sanskrit scholar of eminence. He received his early education at the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) campus where his father was working as a Professor and Head of the Department of Mathematics. Young Jayant Narlikar had a brilliant career in school and intermediate. He obtained his BSc degree from the BHU in 1957. As was the case in those days with most brilliant students, Dr Narlikar too opted to pursue his higher studies at Cambridge, UK. He was a Wrangler and Tyson Medallist in the Mathematical Tripos, at Cambridge from where he obtained his degrees in mathematics, B.A. (1960), Ph.D. (1963), M.A. (1964) and Sc.D. (1976). He also distinguished himself at Cambridge with the Smith’s Prize in 1962 and the Adams Prize in 1967. He stayed back at Cambridge till 1972, as a Fellow of King’s College (1963-72) and Founder Staff Member of the Institute of Theoretical Astronomy (1966-72). It was during this period that Dr Narlikar laid the foundations of his research work in cosmology and astrophysics in collaboration with his internationally acclaimed mentor, guide and collaborator, Fred Hoyle. Incidentally Fred Hoyle is one of the ten eminent scientists featured alongside the greats like Einstein, Darwin, Kelvin, Linus Pauling by the highly acclaimed astrophysicist Mario Livio in his highly enlightening book, “Brilliant Blunders.” 

 One of Dr. Narlikar's most significant contributions, is his development of the "Hoyle-Narlikar Theory," also known as the "Quasi-Steady State Cosmology" (QSSC), which he proposed in collaboration with his illustrious mentor, Professor Fred Hoy. This cosmological theory proposes an alternative explanation for the origin and evolution of the universe, challenging the widely accepted Big Bang theory of that time. According to QSSC, the universe is in a constant state of expansion where new matter is continuously being created. This theory provided an alternative perspective on the formation of galaxies, the distribution of matter, and the cosmic microwave background radiation. While QSSC is not universally accepted, it did however stimulate new debates and avenues of research in cosmology. 

Dr. Narlikar has also made significant contributions to our understanding of the black holes. In the year 2020, three scientists, Sir Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for their work in understanding black holes. Dr Narlikar developed the concept of "self-gravitating systems," which considers the gravitational effects of matter on the space-time geometry surrounding black holes. This work has enhanced our understanding of the behaviour of black holes and their role in the evolution of galaxies. His contributions have also extended to the study of active galactic nuclei, where he proposed the "magnetic field ejection model" to explain the observed properties of these energetic sources. 

Dr. Narlikar returned back to India from Cambridge, to join the Theoretical Astrophysics Group at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), where he served for seventeen long years, from 1972-1989. This group, under the leadership of Dr Narlikar, expanded and acquired international standing for TIFR in the field of theoretical astrophysics, which TIFR continues to enjoy even today. In the year 1988, Dr Narlikar, was extended an invitation by the University Grants Commission (UGC) to set up the proposed Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), as its Founder Director. Today, IUCAA stands out as one of the institutions of excellence in teaching and research in astronomy and astrophysics not just in India but globally, and the ideals and the work ethics and culture, which Dr Narlikar instituted at this institution have continued to guide this institution, which has attained canonical heights. Under his leadership, IUCAA has nurtured numerous young scientists and contributed to the growth of astrophysics in India. Dr Narlikar held the Directorship of IUCAA until his retirement in 2003. Dr Narlikar continues to be associated with IUCAA as an Emeritus Professor. 

Dr Narlikar has also served as the President of the Cosmology Commission of the International Astronomical Union from 1994 to 1997. He has received several national and international awards and honorary doctorates. He is a Bhatnagar awardee, as well as a recipient of the M.P. Birla award, the Prix Janssen of the French Astronomical Society and a prestigious Associate of the Royal Astronomical Society of London. He is Fellow of the three national science academies as well as of the Third World Academy of Sciences. 

Jayant Narlikar, belongs to one of those rare breed of scientists, who notwithstanding their international stature, always finds time to connect Science with people, either through his popular science writings, fiction, both in English and most importantly in his mother tongue Marathi. It is therefore no wonder that most School and college going students from yesteryears to current times, have grown up reading Dr Narlikar’s writings, particularly his fiction works. Two examples of his fiction writing in Marathi, which he had written three decades ago, resonate with current times. ‘In his fictional story, titled Athenscha Plague’ (The plague in Athens), included in his book ‘Antaralatale Bhasmasur’ (Demons in the Space), Narlikar had written about the deadly viruses and how they pose danger to human society. His prophetic thoughts, which he penned as fiction became a reality which the world witnessed during the COVID 19 global pandemic. The word AI (Artificial Intelligence) is now ubiquitous. But then Dr Narlikar wrote about it in one of his fictional essays; Vaman Parat Na Aala’ (Vaman did not return). In this essay he writes about the possibilities of the aftermaths of the rise of a super-intelligent robots, a glimpse of which we are now witnessing in AI language modules like the Chat GPT. Dr Narlikar has also contributed many science articles in leading newspapers and has joined in radio/TV programmes for debates and discussion as a part of his science popularisation activities He has helped make complex scientific concepts accessible to the general public. In addition to his scientific contributions, Dr. Narlikar has made efforts to bridge the gap between science and philosophy. He has explored the concept of "cosmic censorship," which seeks to understand the limits of our knowledge and the fundamental nature of the universe. Dr. Narlikar's work in this area has stimulated interdisciplinary discussions and encouraged scientists and philosophers to engage in meaningful dialogues. 

For his stellar contributions to science communication and popularising science, Dr Narlikar was honoured by the UNESCO, in 1996, with the prestigious Kalinga Award for his extraordinary popular science works. Dr Narlikar is also the recipient of the prestigious Padma Bhushan award from the Government of India in 1965 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2004. In the year 2011, the Maharashtra government awarded him the state’s highest civilian award, the Maharashtra Bhushan. Dr Narlikar was also befittingly chosen to serve as the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Nehru Science Centre, Mumbai, the centre, which I had the honour to head for two terms. 

I vividly remember one of the instances of my personal interactions with him. On behalf of the Nehru Science Centre, Mumbai, I had the honour to curate an exhibition on ‘100 Years of Nobel Prizes’ in 2001. We were so honoured that, Dr Narlikar had learnt of this exhibition and he shot out a letter to DG NCSM, and requested him that this exhibition should be presented at IUCAA. It was such an honour for us to present this exhibition at IUCAA Pune. I also had the honour to conduct a curated walk through this exhibition to Dr Narlikar and his colleagues. I had used a less heralded image in one of the exhibition panels of the exhibition to highlight the works of Prof S Chandrasekhar, 1983 Nobel laureate in Physics, under the section Nobel Indians. Interestingly there was tremendous pressure for me to remove this ‘unimportant’ image from this panel by my Director, which I desisted very strongly knowing well how important and inspirational this image was for Prof Chandra. The moment Dr Narlikar saw this image, he instantly asked, is this that image which immensely motivated Chandra, which he had put up in his office? That moment was as good as a moment of epiphany for me, coming from Dr Narlikar. 

Dr Narlikar has delivered innumerable lectures and conducted many interactions with students at the Nehru Science Centre. As Dr Narlikar celebrates his 86th birthday, I take this opportunity, on behalf of the science communicators community, to wish Dr Narlikar a very happy birthday and join the nation in praying for his good health and continuing contributions. May he continue to inspire young students to tread his path and let us hope that one or many of them go on to bring the coveted Nobel Prize for India, which Dr Narlikar always repented that, despite great work done by many scientists in India, the Nobel prize has eluded Indian scientists. Hope his wish comes true sooner than later. 

Wishing Dr. Narlikar a very happy birthday and may the legacy of Dr Narlikar continue to shape the field of astrophysics and inspire future generations of scientists to explore the unending expanse and mysteries of the cosmos, for benefitting human society with the untold applications, which come with our understanding of the universe.

Heroic Welcome Awaits the Indian T20 World Cup-winning Team.

 

Heroic Welcome Awaits the Indian T20 World Cup-winning Team.

The connection between Cricket and Political Class in India

The T20 World Cup-winning Indian team landed in India this morning. It will await a heroic welcome, which will commence with the team meeting with the Honourable Prime Minister. This will be followed by an open motor car ride for the team to a thunderous welcome in the city of Mumbai, which will remind us of those nostalgic memories of 2007 when India won its last T20 World Cup and the team received a mega welcome back to India in the city of Mumbai on an open car cavalcade.

The Heroic welcome back to India for the 2024, T20 World Cup-winning team was delayed due to the disruption in the travel plans of the team owing to Hurricane Beryl which struck West Indies. India's T20 Cricket World Cup winning team finally left West Indies yesterday by a special Air India charter flight AIC24WC - Air India Champions 24 World Cup – which had taken off from Bridgetown, Barbados around 4:50 a.m. local time on July 3 and arrived in Delhi this morning at 6 AM after a 16-hour non-stop journey. Even before the team met the PM, politics started immediately after the PM spoke to the winning team and congratulated them for their brilliant performance all through the tournament, special in the final match which they won against South Africa in a nail-biting finish.

The connection of Cricket with political class is not new in India. From its colonial origins to modern times, Indian cricket has carried the influence and power that politicians crave. It is not unusual to see political leaders harvest the benefits of the popularity of the game for their party's advantage.  Moreover, post the 1983 World Cup Victory and the dominance of India in the international Cricket administration, the political class is not only using cricket to connect with people but they have also taken over the running of the game in India, whether it is through a direct role at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) or through proxy figures. Therefore, it will be unfair for the opposition to politicise the congratulatory message of the Indian PM to team India or his meeting with the Indian team. Be it Pt Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Man Mohan Singh, or PM Modi, Sonia Gandhi, every one of them has had their share of hosting the Indian cricket team, which has populated social media.

Incidentally, I used this concept while curating two Cricket Connects exhibitions – Cricket Connects India – Australia and Cricket Connects India – UK – which were showcased in Australia in 2016 and in three cities in England in 2017, respectively. It was on July 3, 2017, that this exhibition was opened in Birmingham, an image of this accompanies this post. One of the sections in these two exhibitions was “Cricket and Indian National Consciousness”.

Cricket and Indian Cinema are the two main mass mediums, which besides providing entertainment, arouse passion, and nationalism and arguably also unite every section of the Indian society. Both Cricket and Bollywood transcend class and religious boundaries throughout the Indian subcontinent. Every Indian, irrespective of age and gender is fairly well-informed about the game of cricket and they come together to support their team with heightened patriotic feelings.  Bollywood exploited the links between nationalism and cricket with the movie Lagaan – Ashutosh Gowariker's Academy Award-nominated film. The film portrays a pre-independent India that depicts cricket as the unifying factor in developing the idea of a Nation and attempts to form a national consciousness.

Many scholars who have written on the rise of cricket in India have argued that the game is naturally suited to the Indian consciousness. Ashis Nandy, one of the scholars, goes a step further and comments that “Cricket is an Indian game accidentally discovered by the English.”  One of the main factors in the ever-growing link between cricket and National consciousness has been the political classes. Even before cricket took over from hockey as the most popular sport in India, Indian politicians have used this game to broaden their appeal. India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, played cricket and his daughter Indira Gandhi, also the Prime Minister of India, used photos of her father striding out to bat, and dressed in his cricket whites, on political pamphlets during the Emergency of 1975 for reaching out to the cricket crazy Indians.

Cricket in India reflects or maintains a strong collective psychology of the masses which gives rise to collective identities. Cricket has also been used to achieve political motivation. It is therefore no wonder that the Indian political class and the leaders have always been supportive of this game and at varying times the Indian leadership, across the range of the political spectrum, have always supported the game and have taken pride in hosting cricket players. Several cricket boards in India, including the all-powerful BCCI, have innate connections with the political class. Be it Indira Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Sonia Gandhi, Man Mohan Singh, every one of them has had their tryst with the Indian Cricket team.

Some analysts argue that the relationship between Cricket and politics in India is mutually beneficial; Cricket needs politicians in India to get money and to overcome the red tape, bureaucratic problems, and issues and politicians use cricket and the players, who are idolised by the Indians, as a means of gaining popularity. It is not that this linkage is a post-independence or post-1983 phenomenon. The links between Cricket and our leaders were developed even before Independence. The BCCI was formed by the Maharajahs of the Princely States, and cricket boards have always been supported by the most powerful people in the area.

Another crucial factor that has increased the link between cricket and national consciousness is the popularity of the game post the 1983 Prudential World Cup which the Indians most unexpectedly won. India by then had just begun its colour transmission, on the National TV Channel, Doordarshan, with the opening of the Asian Games in Delhi in 1982.  The economic liberalization that began in 1991 was a blessing in disguise for the popularity of the game. One of the major sectors which were benefitted from the economic liberalization included the Television Industry, which was deregulated in 1993 leading to an exponential rise in the private TV Channels. The success in the World Cup in 1983, ten years earlier, combined with the spread of new television stations brought cricket to whole new audiences throughout India. The Indian audience could now view their favourite sports sitting in the comforts of their living rooms.

The Australian media mogul Rupert Murdoch's Star Sports and ESPN channels became the mainstay for bringing cricket to an ever-widening audience. Radio, and more particularly television, and in recent times, the Internet, has helped make cricket the most popular game in India. Men, women, and children who were inimical to the game and had no interest in cricket earlier have now become ardent fans – all because of its broadcast by radio, television, and the Internet. The One Day Cricket (50 overs game) and the T20 and IPL on television are a boon for advertisers because commercials can be shown every five minutes or so, after each over. This, combined with the need for new channels to fill their schedules, meant more and more matches being shown. Multinational Corporations (MNCs) entered India as the Indian economy opened up and they needed brand ambassadors with whom the population identified. Cricket players provided the perfect vehicle for this growth which in turn boosted the popularity of the star players. MNCs have exploited the subcontinent's love of cricket, and also of Bollywood. Using movie stars and cricketers to advertise their products, MNCs gained an extraordinary reach in the subcontinent – in India, billboards with cricketers like Tendulkar or Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan holding a Pepsi or Coca-Cola became ubiquitous. 

With time the effects of economic liberalization brought in 'big money' and a proportion of the population had more and more money to spend. The developments also brought about a growing middle class who became the prime movers of national consciousnesses. The ever-growing middle classes in India are the standard bearers of nationalism and encourage the links between cricket and national consciousness.  The media has deepened this link between cricket and nationalism. This hyper-nationalism comes to the fore particularly when India plays Pakistan in cricket, which was witnessed when India played Pakistan in the league T20 World Cup and also during the ICC World Cup 2023 which was played in India at the Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad. In the run-up to the India/Pakistan matches the media goes into overdrive portraying this as a virtual war of some sort.

As India continues to dominate the world of cricket so will be the potential for the political class to continue to be connected with the game of Cricket. Who wins or loses or whether both win, is for the people to decide and so be it.

Images: Courtesy Getty and Internet

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