Peace, at last for the Neela Hauz
Tweet The wheel has come full circle… Yesterday’s article about the Neela Hauz, in the Times of India, made my day! In a day or two DDA will take over the lake and plans have already been made by Bio-Diversity experts to restore Neela Hauz and its forest. The Neela Hauz water has got back its home. Ever since the Citizen’s movement for restoration of Neela Hauz began, the focus has been on the idealistic, enthusiastic citizens, who highlighted the plight of the lake. And rightfully so… because they went beyond the call of duty to answer the voice of their...
Read MoreDoes the Environment really need your protection?
Tweet Dear Jal Rakshaks ‘Environmental Protection’ is the new buzz word – in policy, text books, corporate manuals, CSR agendas, political manifestos, NGO Objectives……. Anywhere and everywhere….the slogan is – ‘ PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT’. And yet…the ‘Environment’ continues to get a raw deal everywhere– villages spring up in forests, animals disappear; mining holes appear in ancient mountain ranges, mountains become bare; streams dry up, rivers turn into nullahs; wells give water of all colours & smog envelops us all…. Why this dichotomy ??...
Read MorePray for those who are suffering
Tweet Oh God! I’m feeling miserable! It’s 12.30 in the night, as the rain pours incessantly, suddenly the sight of those black polythene sheet covered hutments that I had seen just last week, flashes across my eyes. In my mind I saw the old man telling me about daily wages in UP, the young kids playing around and begging to be photographed , the goat chewing placidly and the young men teaching us how to steal the pavement hand-rails…..and suddenly it hit me…….this was a tragedy I was watching unfold. I remembered that long unending row of polythene...
Read MoreMy dearest Chulbuli Pandey – a letter to the Yamuna river in flood
Tweet My dearest Chulbuli Pandey, Aah! Yamuna meri jaan – kya dabangg cheez ho tum ! Ekdum se aisa jhatka de diya, ki sab ko hilaa kar rakh diya! Kyun chhamiya – itna gussa kis baat ka ?? Like Shahrukh ‘Don’ Khan’s ‘Junglee Billi’ - in one fit of anger you’ve demolished all delusions we had about being your masters! We thought we’d tamed you – we Zero sized you, by damming you up; weighed down your frail body by dumping all our kachra in you – and sat happily in our ivory towers thinking – bhookhi billi kya panja maregi?? Your long time,...
Read MoreThe Annual Monsoon Mess – Can we do something to prevent this?
Tweet Dear Jal Rakshaks Indians down the ages have celebrated the first showers of the Monsoon rain. It brought with it the promise of a bountiful yield, joy and prosperity all around. It has been a major source of inspiration for Indian folklore and creative arts. Even today, it has the power to make or break governments and economic indices in India. From time immemorial, the monsoon has been coming every year - and yet it always seems to catch us unprepared. Infact, it seems that planning for the monsoon excess was better in the ancient times than it is now! Today,...
Read MoreThe Neela Hauz Will Live Again!
Tweet The Bridge over Neela Hauz is now nearly complete. I thought it was time to step up the pressure on PWD to remove the soil dumped in the lake. So I called up the Engineer-In-Charge of the project – Mr. Karunanidhi – to ask to meet with him. Before I could say anything he excitedly said, “Madam, I have been trying to call you for the past one week! I want to meet you – I have a surprise for you” I met him on Friday evening and after talking for some time in his office, he took me down below the bridge to show me – “The Engineering Marvel that this bridge...
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