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JNU raises an ecological alarm

Lakshmi B. Ghosh

Rapid infrastructure addition causing concern among varsity community

NEW DELHI: Concerned that its rich ecological landscape is increasingly facing threats from infrastructure expansions on the campus, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) teachers have formed a special environment committee to undertake a reality check on the university's ecology.

Initiated by the JNU Teachers' Association (JNUTA), the first of its kind proposal to document the university's rich green cover is aimed at creating a format that will help in "assessing and auditing the existing use of resources on the campus".

JNUTA feels that a proper study will not only reveal the true state of the campus but also help in planning the best practices for conserving campus resources. In a letter to the committee members explaining the reasons for the initiative, JNUTA noted that "such has been the pace and design of this rapid infrastructure addition that the health of our natural endowments has now become the source of much anxiety and consternation among various members of JNU community. We remain unclear as to both the quality and the quantity of our ecological footprint and whether we have taken actions that will lead to negative short and long term environmental consequences".

Following the committee's first meeting on January 22, it has been decided to conduct a systematic documentation of the university's existing wildlife, vegetation, hydrology and soil moisture with some of the measurements being put on a GIS map to allow a ready to analyse format that can help in decision-making.

The committee has also proposed formation of a legal team for compiling a list of available laws to protect the ridge. "The collation and collection of such data will be aimed at assembling a report that will be addressed to the JNU community and the administration. The idea will be to use the report to inform subsequent actions for best environmental practices for the campus such as energy efficiency, water efficiency and adopting protective measures for safeguarding the natural endowments on the campus," revealed JNUTA president Rupamanjari Ghosh.

The environmental committee assembled by JNUTA includes experts C.R. Babu, Dunu Roy, Pradip Kishen, Prashant Bhushan, Pratibha Pande, Shekhar Singh and Vikram Soni, while representing JNU will be Aditya Mukherjee, Arun K. Attri, Rohan D'Souza, Rupamanjari Ghosh, Sachidanand Sinha, Saumitra Mukherjee, Sucheta Mahajan and V. Rajamani.

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