Another tragedy

JUST when one thought the worst was over for Himachal Pradesh, tragedy has struck the hill state again. The trail of death and devastation is heart-wrenching. The monsoon season this year continues to wreak havoc, leaving indelible scars. The perils of interfering with the fragile Himalayan ecology have manifested themselves in the most brutal of ways. The colossal loss, an outcome of one disaster after the other, is clear proof that the development model being followed obsessively in the state is flawed and ill-conceived.

Agreed, Himachal has received unprecedented rainfall. There is no disputing, too, that natural calamities can strike anywhere, anytime. Missing the larger picture would amount to sticking to a self-destructive path. Mistakes have been made at every level. Mega infrastructure projects have been advertised as symbols of prosperity, but the unscientific construction activity had the threat of destruction embedded in it. Among ordinary Himachalis, the frenzy to not lose out on the tourism moolah has led to illogical and unsustainable choices becoming commonplace. Unsound mountain cutting, soil vulnerability, dumping of debris in the rivers and unchecked illegal mining are being flagged, and rightly so, for being key contributory factors to the man-made devastation.

Perpetual landslides, boulders tumbling down the highways, road cave-ins and buildings falling like a house of cards — how is this normal, even during the monsoon? Change, ideally, should come from within. In Himachal, stringent imposition of rules can be the only way forward. One can only hope that the unending horrors of 2023 jolt the collective psyche and trigger impactful responses. Call an all-party meeting, involve civil society and send bipartisan teams to the affected areas. Confront the shocking reality.