Nature coughs and cries…. By Dr Tapati Dey : Yet again the green-fingered junta is up in arms against the proposed insensitivity of wiping out the green canopy the city boasts of! On one hand they have been campaigning loud and clear to save the verdant pride this city is famous for. On the other hand the newspapers have been splashing news about a panther foraying into residential areas of the city frightening the life out of some high and mighty as well as the simple souls of the vicinity where the panther moved out for his (k)nightly sojourn may be trying his best to re-locate himself having been denied the quietude and dark-thick habitat his life is usually meant for! Just a few days ago the country was huffing puffing and coughing life out of selves in dire desperation due to extreme paucity of oxygen supply. Uncountable precious human lives were lost because of lack of oxygen. Ironically the real source of oxygen supply is being destroyed time and again by us. Human greed is unstoppable. We need modernisation; we need concretisation; we need to boast and show the world our progress - going shoulder to shoulder with other progressive or developed/developing countries! We want to proudly flaunt our futuristic ideas. What we do not want to do is - study! Study the facts and factual of the place we live in; the centuries old beauty that this place is known for - its flora and fauna; its natural water bodies; its greenery despite a sizzling temperature barometer that we denizens accept; despite the scare of a hot and tough summer! The last 14 calendar months have proved that Nature reverberated in its own happiness while the atmosphere remained quite unpolluted because of a compulsory closure of the world due to the pandemic. Yes Nature breathed free and was fortunate to have been blessed with the humans forced indoors. From a certain distance miles away the regal Himalayas glistened with its peaks reflecting the majestic snow cover. The trees had a lovely green glow as the air remained dust free. All of us praised all that we could view during a few compulsive trips to buy essentials in our own little city! Here again the devils are waiting with the axe this time to grind their axes of pride in the name of building most-modern structures to beautify the city and yes make it look SMART-est - amongst all! Already the prestigious (for some) lake-view at the Telangkhedi is giving a bald look as the verdant cover in and around the area has been hacked away! The city-fathers have helped to orphanise the place having ripped off the greenery. However hoarse one might cry all voices have been falling on deaf ears and blind eyes curtained with greed and selfishness. Tall promises take centre-stage that Nature will be compensated by re-locating full grown trees and planting three times more what we are imminently going to lose! Man can be fooled. Not Nature surely! In the last so many decades how many trees have survived? New plantations were done at prominent places. I guess that were for news-splashes and photo-shoots! The still-so-elusive panther did not move out for a joyous evening walk! Let me tell you he is desperately searching for his much-belonged hide-out! He is searching for his natural habitat. He is in search of the thick green blanketted home he actually belongs to. We humans are known to throw out our kith and kin from their homes. The turn of these silent sufferers is obvious now! All we humans can do is cage them and snarl at them from the outside laughing at their desperation for freedom! We make a mockery of life being scared of falling a prey to these carnivores waiting patiently (though) with ropes and cages to hunt them cage them and proudly display the prize-catch patting our backs for such bravery! Incidentally its a paradox that we celebrate World Environment Day " World Water Day and many such days promising to take care of Nature as a parent would to his child! We stick banners and raise hoardings arrange for seminars talks and debates on Save Environment Save Nature! Save water! Save the Tiger…." and many more ! What hypocrisy! Nature provides us with all luxuries of Life! Unfortunately we are so selfish that we do not allow Nature to breathe the fresh air it actually owns!

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