The recent floods would not have been so disastrous had the Madhav Gadgil-led Western Ghats Expert Ecology Panel (WGEEP) report been taken seriously, environmental activist V.S. Vijayan, who was part of the WGEEP panel, has said.
The disaster was one that was waiting to happen, he said, speaking at a conference organised by the Kerala State Higher Education Council (KSHEC) here on Monday on ‘Social preparedness of disaster management and geo-scientific strategies.’
Prof. Vijayan said the areas classified as ecologically sensitive zones 1 and 2 in the Gadgil report had witnessed the most number of landslides during the flood.
Lack of afforestation efforts in the dam catchment areas also contributed to the loss of lives and property. A ban recommended on constructions that stopped the natural course of rivers also was ignored.
The implementation of the panel recommendations would have brought down the extent of destruction at least by 80%. Prof. Vijayan also said the GDP was not the ideal yardstick for measuring development. Any development mode must incorporate priority for ecological conservation and optimum utilisation of natural resources.
