Bad planning adds to Gujarat's woes

By Manas Dasgupta

GANDHINAGAR, DEC. 31. Bad planning coupled with vote-catching populist measures without taking into account the scarce natural resources have contributed to the degradation of land in Gujarat. According to an official document published by the State Government, the scarce natural resources such as water was either not valued or was under-valued leading to the over-use or wastage of the resources causing water-logging in some parts of the State and acute shortage in others.

According to the document the planners had never taken into account the acute shortage of water resources in the State in the absence of perennial rivers except the Narmada and Mahi and shortage in rainfall and yet water rates both for irrigation and industrial purposes is the cheapest in the State compared to some other States. For industrial purposes, while the rates for water in some other industrialised States were Rs. 65 per 1,000 litres in Karnataka, Rs. 45 in Tamil Nadu and Rs. 38 in Maharashtra, in Gujarat it had just been revised from Rs. 3.50 per 1,000 litres to a mere Rs. 6.50. The rates are negligible for the farm sector and coupled with the populist measure to provide cheap electricity to the farm sector by supplying power at a mere 50 paise per horse power for the pumps used to draw water for irrigation had led to ``massive overuse'' of groundwater with the attendant problems of degradation of the quality of land and the aquifers.

Despite the hike recommended by the State Electricity Regulatory Commission as per the suggestion of the Asian Development Bank which was insisting on metering every unit of power supplied to the farm sector, the State Government following a threat of agitation by the farmers recently decided to continue the existing system at least for six more months in view of the prevailing drought conditions though it meant an additional subsidy of over Rs. 400 crores over and above Rs. 1,800 crores subsidy being provided to the farm sector per annum.

Pointing out the loopholes in the State's development planning, the document said while economic development was given paramount importance while formulating plans and policies for human development, the consequential degradation associated with the development, the multiplicity of bio-climatic and socio-economic factors was only marginally recognised to ensure sustainable development. The State accounts failed to consider the stock of natural resources and the environment causing degradation of environment quality.

Most of the environmental degradation had been found on the ``common resources'' like pasture lands, rivers and air where no incentives were provided to the users for conservation and preservation leading to over-exploitation and degradation of the resources. The awareness of environmental degradation was found to be very poor among the common users as well as the community leaders, administrators and even the policy makers, and very little emphasis has been given in the State on environment in its ambition to occupy the first spot among the most industrially developed States.

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