Panchatantra is the story of four friends, three scholars and their jokes. While walking through a forest, they find a bunch of bones. Scholars see an opportunity to put their learning to practical use. A person connects bones into a skeleton. The second covers the skeleton with flesh, blood and skin. Before the third scholar can bring the animal to life, their less scholar friend tells them to stop, as the body they have reconstructed is that of a lion. They laugh at him, and he climbs a tree. The three scholars give life to the lion, and it immediately eats their fill. The story illustrates the difference between knowledge and wisdom. It has an effect on human intervention to change nature.
“Joshimath is a deposit of sand and stone – it is not the main rock – so it was not suitable for a settlement. Vibrations caused by blasting, heavy traffic, etc., will cause an imbalance in the natural factors…” This on Joshimath MC Mishra committee report, which is from before 1976. Mishra was the district collector and headed a committee of 18 members who, perhaps, had more technical expertise than an IAS officer.
The report urged a ban on heavy construction, agriculture on slopes and felling of trees. It recommended construction of causeway to prevent seepage of rain water, proper sewage system and cement blocks on river banks to prevent erosion. Perhaps these recommendations will help prevent other cities in Uttarakhand from becoming as vulnerable as Joshimath.
Due to geological formations, the Himalayas are relatively young. They are still rising, as the tectonic plate on which the Indian subcontinent lies moves north, crushing against the Eurasian landmass. The Himalayan structures do not have the persistence of older mountain ranges. This is why it is easier to tunnel through the Alps than the Himalayas.
Perhaps there are engineering solutions that can still dig tunnels through the Himalayas, without creating a mass of mountain above the tunnel. But they have to be found and adopted. More importantly, these will probably cost more, and funding should come after it is satisfied that the cost-benefit calculation still works.
A more difficult task is to manage the social processes that undermine the Himalayan high-altitude cities. In the latter there are two types of magnets for people from the plains: temples and holy springs that attract the religious, and so-called hill stations that offer a respite from the heat, dust and heat for those willing to spend the day well-heeled. provide respite from the haze of daily life. Some money on short trips.
As more and more people have the opportunity to either make spiritual excursions or simply seek bliss, the number of people reaching the heights of the Himalayas increases, along with housing, vehicular traffic, and road construction to facilitate transportation. also increases. This activity brings prosperity to the residents of the hills.
To prevent cities from collapsing like Joshimath, strict limits will have to be placed on the number of people allowed to satisfy their spiritual or hedonistic desires. The easiest way to ration the Himalayan’s opportunity is to keep the price high. But this would be a very elitist solution. Instead a first come, first served or lot drawing may be preferred. These need to be strictly implemented in whatever way one likes, without fear or favour. This is a challenge in India, made harder by adopting state-of-the-art manufacturing methods.
But Joshimath raises the same fundamental challenges that citizens and governments face directly in the face of climate change risks.
Many creatures change nature, from ants that build burrows to otters that build dams, but none quite like humans. Humans engage in production, which is defined as changing what exists in nature to make it more useful to them. As their understanding of the laws of nature and their ability to use this understanding to change nature grow, so must their ability to recognize the limits of such change.
People talk about saving the planet. There is no need to save the planet: it will come to a new equilibrium after landslides, earthquakes, global warming, melting of ice caps or the sinking of entire cities. It is humanity itself, whose existence is in danger.
Human activity needs to be informed by knowledge, not just knowledge. Otherwise, we will have many more zealots.
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