Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Prevent pollution of wetlands' that was published in Newsband

Prevent pollution of wetlands

Just recently a lake in Bengaluru was on fire, with a massive plume of smoke that could be seen from afar. This proved that urban environments are crashing under the weight of official indifference. Bengaluru is no longer the city of lakes and famed gardens. It has lost an estimated 79% of water bodies and 80% of its tree cover from the baseline year of 1973. This is the condition of more developed and prosperous city like Bengaluru where literacy rate is higher than the other cities.

Loss of natural wetlands is an ongoing catastrophe in India. A survey indicated that 38% of wetlands had already been lost nationally; and shockingly, in some districts only 12% survived. The Centre has since issued rules for conservation and management, and chosen 115 water bodies in 24 States for protection support,

Every city needs a single lake protection authority. India’s worsening air quality is now well documented, and most of its wetlands are severely polluted. We must always talk about sustainable development. Wetlands form an important part of the ecosystem. It should be conserved. The government must come up with a comprehensive plan to protect all the water bodies. The pollution of water must be stringently measured. People need to make some life style changes as well, which are essential to curb this ascending trend of pollution.

Karnataka people are far more concerned about environment than people living in many northern cities including Mumbai. And if Bengaluru is facing such catastrophe than you can think how bad things would be in other cities in which people just don't care.

Bengaluru is very famous for lakes and garden. But in the name of growing urbanisation more number of lakes have been converted into play ground, stadium, college, bus stand and residential areas. Existing lakes are polluted with garbages. Since wet lands are vital to keep up the ecological balance of the city, the Karnataka government must pay attention at least to preserving the existing water bodies and keeping them away from pollution.