Jaipur: Despite the growing emphasis on public transport across the country, India has only two buses for every 1,000 people according to a report released by an environmental NGO here today.
"On an average, India has only two buses for every 1,000 people - this is despite the growing emphasis on public transport as cities across the country succumb to severe air pollution.”
"Many water bodies in India are now severely polluted. Three of Rajasthan’s most well-known lakes – the Jalmahal, Jaisamand and Udaisagar - are in a list of the most severely polluted water bodies of India, with BOD levels above the safe limit of 3 mg/l3," says the State of India's Environment Report 2017 released by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) DG DG Sunita Narain at the Jaipur Literature Festival here.
The Report also said that while there has been an overall decline in environmental crimes reported in the country, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan account for 76 per cent of the cases and the maximum number of people arrested for environmental crimes.
It said that 26 of India’s 29 states have reported a rise in area undergoing desertification in the past 10 years while almost 30 per cent of the country’s area is degraded. "India ranks among the lowest in the list of countries on the Sustainable Development Index," it said.
CSE said that the report makes a "strong case for de-globalisation" and is a unique, one-of-its-kind compilation of information, opinion and data on environment and development in India.
The report covers subjects ranging from forests and wildlife, climate change, rural development, disasters and conflicts to health, mining, water and sanitation, energy and industry and air pollution and also includes latest statistics on environmental crimes, land and agriculture, water bodies and transportation.
"There is something fundamentally wrong in the way we are managing our economies and societies, which is resulting into dissent. Environmental issues cannot be ignored if we want to secure life and health. Rich world tell us that there is a growing dissent against what was considered a successful economic model," said Narain.
Stressing on the need to reconsider future growth strategies, she said that localisation is not a bad idea. It is building a new future with local resources by local communities. This challenge of affordable growth is what will drive sustainable growth in the future, he added.
