Wealth of cities - Local Enterprise Must Be Encouraged

By KP Bhattacharjee
The Statesman, August 7

The West Bengal government is trying to showcase the number of MOUs it has signed with industrialists, particularly from abroad. The government needs to look closely at the reports that have been published by various UN organisations, the European Union, and the international institutes of environment and development. All of them have recommended the need to reduce emission of green house gases while setting up new industries.
It would be pertinent to examine the statement of Governor Mr Gopalkrishna Gandhi, at the convocation of the West Bengal University of Animal and Fishery Sciences on 9 April. He emphasised that while urbanisation was inevitable, it ought not to be carried out at the cost of wetlands and pastures. The state government has to take steps to maintain them. This statement has sent strong signals to state government agencies in the field of environment, wetlands and urban development, such as the West Bengal Pollution Control Board, East Calcutta Wetland Management Authority, Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation to prevent unplanned urbanisation and protect the wetlands.

Timely warning

The Governor’s warning is timely because the wetlands are in danger of losing their enlistment under the Ramsar Convention if the present trend of construction continues. The government has been reminded that it is not enough to conserve and manage the wetlands that stretch across 12,500 hectares and were included in the Ramsar list in 2002.
The move to set up more industries even at the cost of agricultural and forest lands has resulted in the need for better infrastructure and housing development. Consequently the promoters and builders are constructing highrise apartments, shopping malls, amusement parks wherever wetlands and waterbodies are found in and around the city. In many cases, the promoters have filled up waterbodies though there is a standing law that forbids such activity. Political interference has stalled proceedings against promoters and builders who violate laws.
The promoters are now building on the wetlands of East Kolkata by influencing local officials. This poses a serious threat to fish, flora and fauna and migratory birds. The area is also the city’s natural drainage belt.
As a policy decision, the development of Rajarhat can be faulted. This satellite town is coming up in East Kolkata almost in parallel to Salt Lake. It is the brainchild of the housing minister. Rajarhat’s master plan has not been prepared to suit the local climate and wind movement. It has been observed that movement of the wind over light industries and manufacturing units will flow over the residential areas, affecting the health of the people.
The development of Rajarhat has triggered land speculation. Land sharks have procured thousands of acres stretching from the border of Rajarhat up to Vedic village and beyond. This has triggered a price war. The situation is so critical that town planners and architects have appealed to the state government to enforce laws to minimise land speculation and transfer. The government has decided not to allow construction or any development activity without the approval of the local authorities.
New satellite towns and industries should be set up on non-agricultural land in Howrah and Hooghly. A new town could well have come up in Dankuni as was planned by the urban development department. There was no need for the housing department, whose primary task is to facilitate development and construction of housing, to pitch for a township at Rajarhat. Political rivalry within the party can permanently damage the human settlements and environment.
Climate change is another major topical issue the world over. The “Stern report” and the UK government’s “Tyndall report” have warned that a 90 per cent reduction in greenhouse gases is essential by 2050 to restrict global warming. Current scientific research shows that climate change will accelerate the rise of the sea level rise along much of the coastal area. The rise in water levels will damage agricultural crops, roads, bridges, communications, houses, schools, hospitals, and services. People from these areas will have to move to the interior, resulting in shortage of food, medicine, drinking water and other essential items. It will be a major problem for the government to resettle these displaced persons who are unlikely to return to their coastal settlements. Furthermore, historical monuments, sculptures, and artefacts will be destroyed by the rising water level.
Initially, India didn’t heed the warnings of a climate change. Recent reports indicate that the country has already been affected. According to RK Pachauri, chairman, Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change, much can be done in the near future to cut green house gas emission, such as investing in energy efficiency and reforming the energy sector. However, most countries are worried about the cost that would have to be incurred to reduce such emission.
In June 2006, the World Urban Forum of the UN Habitat Conference in Vancouver, attracted many experts from around the world to speak on the state of cities and urban development. There was a consensus that the cities around the world are unable to provide necessary infrastructure facilities, housing, and sufficient green area for the millions of people moving into the cities. In consequence, a huge pressure gets exerted on the infrastructure, services, housing, water supply, green areas and wetlands.
Professor John Friedman, city planner and honorary professor, School of Community and Regional Planning, University of British Columbia, Canada, in his special habitat lecture at the World Urban Forum stated; “True wealth of cities is found to be in the progressive development of assets such as development of indigenous resources through local entrepreneurs, developing local capital, cultural heritage, open spaces, forests, human resources and urban infrastructure rather than depending on outside capital for industrial development”.

Not confident

He elaborated the plight of Mexico and Puerto Rico when the foreign investors left. Local people struggled to survive since there were no indigenous industries nor local entrepreneurs with capital to develop industries based on local resources. He stressed that the role of the government is to facilitate self-motivated development through consultation with the citizens.
This statement is very appropriate to the situation in West Bengal today, where the state government is assisting the foreign investors to acquire large tracts of land in the name of developing Special Economic Zones, industries, townships and ports. The people are never taken into confidence. The government isn’t confident either about the future of these companies, whether they are short-term ventures to exploit land and cheap labour, or whether they will make long-term investments to train and involve the local people.
Foreign investment, in the era of globalisation, is another form of colonisation. Foreign companies and multinationals have already taken over and/or have closed down many local companies/industries, such as those in soft drinks, paper, cement and consumer products. The wealth of our cities is at stake unless the citizens come together to compel the government to encourage local entrepreneurship, open the closed factories and resist the exploitation of resources by the global companies.

The author is executive director, Centre for Human Settlements