Live Me in the Open Sky

‘Live me in the open sky’ written by Late Dr. Manohar Rai Sardesai captures the essence of what the people of Goa have tried to articulate in their participatory planning process for the Regional Plan 2021. Yet again Goan people have lived up to the reputation of being one of the forerunners informing ecological and environment discourses in the country. But while the Draft Regional Plan 2021 does incorporate within it, flavours of the voices of people in Goa, the question is whether this process will continue in full authenticity, its implementation; and whether the plan will be adopted without changes by the Government of Goa.

Inspired by the Kerala model of development planning initiated by KSSP in Kerala, the Draft Regional Plan 2021 claims to be the outcome of a bottom up process of town planning whereby every single village and ward was engaged in a spatial planning exercise, which was in keeping with the principles of the 73rd and 74th Amendments in the Constitution. The planning exercise facilitated by a special Taskforce which included the Chief Minister of Goa, Former Chief Town Planner, Edger Ribeiro, Architect Dean D’ Cruz, Dr. Oscar Rebello, Shri Blaise Costa Bir among others, has made an interesting departure from most planning exercises in the rest of the country. This is probably the first time the country has seen a state level village wise mapping and planning exercise of such detail; where urban and rural planning have incorporated within its logic and exercise securing of its fragile eco systems of ‘forests, mangroves, paddy fields and beaches which make Goa what it is’; where new ideas and economic models have been offered to investors in a state, where land is a scarce resource.

Democratising Planning

The process adopted by the RGP 2021 in Goa has stemmed out of a large number of protests by the Goan people, at the forefront of which has been the Goa Bachao Abhiyan, who have insisted that the previous plan of Goa, RGP-2001, developed in consensus with only a handful of land sharks and the state, must be rejected and reformulated with every Goan citizen’s voice and stake included in it. The RGP-2021 is a fall out of these protests to democratize development planning in the State.

Given the larger issues of land grab, granting land for SEZs and development projects in India today, planning with people, and making these plans available to people, safeguards from the otherwise opaque processes that states have adopted with regard to planning in the rest of the country. Anyone who has attempted to understand how ‘development projects’ unfold in the state would have in their bag, a number of tales and horror stories of how difficult it is to access plan documents and files from the town planning authorities. The preparation of these ‘secret documents’ have invariably been outsourced to private consultant architect companies who draw up plans for the State, probably including several villages into blotches of suggested hubs, riverfronts, parks and industrial estates, without any discussions of its repercussions with local people living there and what it is that they want in terms of their stakes in the development process. Interestingly the RGP 2021 seems to have followed several detailed processes of correcting these blotches in the previous plan, such as redrawing the boundaries of settlements, locating all water bodies and even bird nesting sites and nature trails, which help animals to cross from one forest to another in village maps. Multiple sources such as topographical sheets, google maps, and the previous 2001 plan have been used in this exercise. As pointed out by Madhav Gadgil in a seminar on the presentation of the plan by some members of the Taskforce in New Delhi, ‘it would be useful to make all the village, district and regional maps available on free open source technology which can be made accessible to all people of Goa at a minimum expense’; this would also to retain transparency.

What is left for investors?

At the seminar “Regional Plan 2021, Imagining Goa’s Future’ at India International Centre(IIC) on 18th September 2010, and organized by Goenkarancho Ekvot, the hall was packed by citizen’s groups belonging to Goa diaspora, environmental activists, and a large number of planners, and students from the School of Planning and Architecture. In admission one of the senior planning officials stated that probably the biggest conflict in planning today is making a shift from market based planning to planning by the people. Spatial planning must become an exercise which thus shifts merely from the various strategies of using and expropriating land for large development projects to also bring in its purview ecological and environmental issues.

The outcome of the research done for the Plan has clearly shown that land is a scarce resource, and with the current booming population in Goa, the per capita availability of land has only shrunk. There is also a harsh reality that land acquired by corporations has been left vacant or not used. Being a ‘leisure capital’ there are no dearth of individuals who have invested resorts, farmhouses and villas in Goa and Goa has also been witness to ‘speculative housing’ which is criminal, given the housing crunch for migrants and poor. Given the fact that almost 54 percent of land in Goa is of the eco sensitive type, probably a huge challenge for the Task Force has been to offer viable investment opportunities, in the midst of serious issues and impacts on the people of Goa of mining, real estate economy and tourism, all of which have played ruthless extractive roles.

To counter the antithesis of the plan, namely mining, real estate development and commercial tourism by five star hotels and resorts, an urgent request by the Taskforce to investors investing in Goa have been to think outside the paradigms. Can Goa be treated as a model of a sustainable society? Some of these models could mean adopting the concept of ‘slow cities’ for a city like Panjim, replicating projects such as ‘The Eden Project’ for mining wastelands, and adopting ‘village tourism models’ as in Hadi village, South Maharashtra which have helped the local people in benefiting from the tourism industry and also retained the original landscapes and bring a balance in the ‘green’ and ‘grey’ infrastructure. Along with this are some important NO’s which include no construction activity along hill slopes which should be declared as no development zones, no new mines should be leased in forest areas, no coal based transportation for power, usage of raw water by industries instead of treated water, and protection of sand dunes.

Translating the rhetoric to reality

Oscar Rebello, from the taskforce states that three kinds of forces have their interests interlocked in Goa’s plan, the ‘extreme environmentalists’ who don’t want a single tree to be cut, ‘the cowboy capitalists’ the actual strangulating class which is dominating the discourse in Goa, wanting to cut every tree or hill in sight and ‘the reasonable realists’ on whose shoulders rests the concern for the environment with practical concerns on livelihoods of lower and upper middle class and interests of the poor.

Matanhy Saldanha, Ex Member of the Goa Legislative Assembly talking about Goa’s survival interests states that the stability of any society depends upon its land. If land is gone everything is gone and development must be eco friendly, people oriented and sustainable for all improving the quality of life. Goan people, are not being able to afford a patch of land or house for themselves given the escalation of land markets. In the current situation land is being transacted among big hotel chains, those who invest from outside the state, those who are buying holiday homes and villas in the leisure capital, and NRIs with more foreign exchange.

It would be interesting to see how dynamic processes including people’s lives and choices, of the market and governance unfold against the static maps created for the plan and whether the democratic processes will continue and how attempts at subversion will be safeguarded against. Furthermore in the maze of the mapping exercise, a point to watch is how far local village interests are collated into regional maps and what kind of development decisions are made on regional maps. Already some development plans have been inserted such as airports, a sea link, a second Konkan railway line and industrial hubs to contain industrial sprawl in nodes, though these are being refuted by concerned villages.

Furthermore the Plan is also interlocked between governance interests. Will this Draft Regional Plan 2021 be passed by the Government of Goa? How far will the State be able to negotiate its interests with the Centre? Rebello from the Taskforce pushing urgently for the plan to be passed states that it is crucial to restrict the indiscriminate construction and mining activity and escalating land markets in Goa, that the plan be adopted soon. ‘Rahul Gandhi must view Goa as urgently as Niyamgiri, and the Goans with as much endearment as the Dongria Kondhs.’, he added.

When it Refuses to Trickle Down

Miles of small golden bundles of wheat neatly placed in a line spread across agricultural fields in Kaushambhi district, known as the ‘doab kshetra’ or the land that is between two great rivers, the Ganga and the Yamuna are dotted with stories of hunger, starvation and malnutrition. The news has not been good, stating that wheat prices have plummeted to an all time low with the prices in Uttar Pradesh recording the lowest in comparison to other states. So as we see a good harvest the irking reality is that the farmers will not get a fair price yet again.

What does this mean for children? Weight records kept by local NGOs show that over 80 percent of the children born in the area are low birth weight and malnourished in their older ages. It is of grave concern to see how the ICDS or Integrated Child Development Scheme, one of the rays of hope in terms of provisioning for early child development by the government is completely defunct. Everyone blames the ‘system’.

The ‘system’ they say in hushed tones is absolutely corrupt. A resident and activist sits down to draw out what he means, but is careful to disclaim that this is privileged information which can only be shared on the basis of anonymity. He explains that every anganwadi worker must shelve out some portion of her salary and submit to the block supervisor, who must commit the amount and in this way money is siphoned out through the chain of hierarchy to the level of the Directorate which in turn hands over the sum to the political power holders. It is an unsaid understanding for being given a plum job in the village and being able to retain it. But of course no one will part with salary; it is the respective materials for the ICDS which should go to children, which take the hit. Even here! is all that one can exclaim as a primary reaction to the problem. Contemplating aloud, I wonder can political ethics be evolved within the accepted practices of corruption. For instance, ‘at least that money will not be siphoned from children’s schemes, especially those children who are in the 0-6 category, having no voting rights and are still to develop a clear voice for themselves’.

A discussion with the CDPO at Bhiti further clarifies that there are inordinate delays in provisioning, ‘Anganwadi workers who are not given an advance but paid on basis of expense. Very often they do not have adequate resources to buy the provisions. Medicines sent from Lucknow have expired. TLMS are not fit for circulation. Quality monitoring of these products are not done locally but centrally. Panjiri is sent from Gurgaon and monitored in Lucknow before it is packed and sent to ICDS locally’.

Traversing through the different Anganwadis running for children in Kaushambi, Pratapgarh and Bhiti districts in Uttar Pradesh the stories of allotted benefits refusing to trickle down only reinforce themselves. There are ramshackle rooms, filled with filth, without proper mats for children to sit in some places, while in others there is just a shed and nothing else. Rice puff and molasses are distributed hurriedly by the Anganwadi worker in village Nadouli. Children carefully fold up their skirts and t-shirts for a fistful of rice puff, hardly anything to make up for their nutrition. Sometimes for some lucky anganwadis the more regular mid day meal in schools also serves the 3 to 6 year old children if the ICDS is located in the primary school. But these are few, and most primary schools with low infrastructure are pressured for space as well.

The Supreme Court provisions have clearly stated that special rations should be provided to children in malnourished categories but out of the ICDS centres, none of the anganwadi workers had any special data on or focus on malnourished children. There were no weighing machines (officially allotted to the Anganwadis), and ‘panjiri’( food supplement in powdered form) seemed to be the only thing that had reached these villages. Hardly edible, the Supreme Court’s recommendation of making available freshly cooked and diversified meals through the week in the ICDS is still a distant dream in these districts.

‘No one will question these women because they are the wives and daughters of powerful people’ say the villagers referring to the ICDS workers, but the problem seems to be felt by all levels in the system making it clear how tough it is for these duty bearers to turn the system in their favour and in the favour of the children they service. An ICDS Block Supervisor in Kaushambhi district clearly states ‘I don’t know what is meant to be there, we use what we get’. Looking around gives a grave picture that the ICDS gets very little.

For better commitment to children’s health, nutrition and education programmes in the 3-6 age group a separate infrastructure needs to be developed rather than half hearted promises.

A local NGO worker states that ‘food’ is a very sensitive topic for ICDS workers, it is better to discuss other things first with them to create a non threatening environment. Others suggest that ICDS workers often fear repercussions of recording death and malnutrition levels and hence they should be rewarded in identifying the same. However members of village community seek higher level of accountability of these service providers. It is clear from them that there are leaks in the pot, which must be sealed first.

Successful community initiatives show that if the concept is understood and there is a commitment and will, quality ICDS centres catering to care, health, nutrition and education of young children can be ensured. This means that local communities must have a say on the food needs of children in the ICDS, this ensures diversified, local and freshly cooked meals. If demonstrable creative play and learning environments are created for children from 3-6 category, which are of quality, the development of children is fast and clearly visible, and even ensures early detection of disability.Also where there have been successful initiatives specifically on maternal health and early child care, one finds that children born in the normal weight category, quickly slip to low birth weight in the first six years of their life. This is mainly because of neglect, since mothers are busy eking out a living through daily wage work in agricultural fields, not conducive to having child care facilities for their children. In such situations the ICDS is a crucial resource to communities providing a safe and hygienic care environment for the child, while mothers go to work. Supportive measures such as health monitoring by the ASHA and ANMs need to be regularized and incentives given to communities to keep grain or food banks which act as protection against sharp rising food prices during times of scarcity.

A common complaint of ICDS workers in the districts visitted is that parents do not send their children to the ICDS, but unless these care systems are built in accessible places and stepped up to become dependable institutions, communities will not be motivated enough to access them. The result is that those who can afford private services will access them at a higher price. Those who can’t afford and require these interventions more urgently will continue to remain neglected.

In search of expressions on the banks of the Damodar

I have been thinking deeply about ‘opposition’ and googling on the word found that it originates from the position of planets and celestial bodies relative to each other. It’s interesting that it should have been adapted into the language of politics. Traversing different mining belts in the country has only raked up feelings of ‘opposition’ in me. Since I lie out of the orbit of celestial bodies, I have really begun to wonder almost helplessly what the way out on this is. Are there other ways of trying to explain the miseries that mining unfolds for resident communities and their landscapes?
My recent visit to the area around Damodar in Jharkhand, revealed that years of mining, large craters and fly ash dumps, cooling ponds and outlet pipes found in the landscape bore histories of resistance and opposition but have also become a part of people’s life. It was an acceptance of a ‘way of life’, after a burial of discontent. I was searching desperately for artists in the community, writers, poets, musicians, and I kept getting one answer, as if to remind me continuously that my reality orientation has gone awry, ‘It is gone, nothing is left.’ Am still wondering how ‘it can go’ and what is it that ‘we want to hold on to’, what is that we want to ‘create and recreate’. Trying to search for art in the everyday, I had first to build an appreciation for those who were already experts in the field, whether linguists or folk singers. They deeply regretted the loss of the art forms in their communities today, almost as if the ravaging of landscapes had ravaged minds. And yet there was an urge that the new creations stick to forms, to the beat of the old. Young entertainers must learn the techniques and the forms they insisted.
A singer, Sukumar ji, who is now nearing sixty has managed to preserve the old and create new within it. After visiting the areas for two days, some leaders, youth groups and activists, I had begun to give up. Was there no artist near the river, who had wanted to write, talk or sing about it? Sukumar ji had written one song on the Damodar. He shared that while several songs mention the river, since it has such a close association with every day life, there was really no great emphasis given to the river in itself. What helped Sukumar ji to ‘discover his talent and nurture it?’, I asked (keeping in mind that he was probably one of the few ‘creators’ I had seen). He shared that his village had a very good library when he was young. The library gave him access to a wide range of books which facilitated his writing. From the blacksmith community, Sukumar’s community would produce almost all that is useful from the agriculture implements, tongs, iron vessels, and other home implements to even loosely assembled country pistols. Also a language activist, and having written several songs in Khorta, he regrets that the library does not function in his village anymore.
A visit to a village off the Damodar, called Jharindi near CCL colonies where pollution has reached such high levels, that methane emanates from its banks, we sit at the tea shop on what is known as Hospital Road. A broken wall in front and new tenements to the left is suggestive of some disturbance here. The village elders explain how a hospital was shifted from here, and the railway line was to divert into the heart of the village and a mine was to be located where the hospital is now. No railway line has come in as yet, but in spite of many years passing after initial land acquisitions having been announced, the dwellings off Hospital road seem to exhibit the ‘fragility of transience’ in them. Right near the pit, which is now covered in grass, is a sacred shrine, a young boy explains that this is dedicated to ‘Kasba Dada’ who saved the village from mining, for when the pit was dug up, no coal was found, and since then the the residents dedicated this patch of land to their sacred village guardian.

The deeper end of the pit is now a small water body, and a village elder shares in a soft tone, that it’s the only honour left for women, I look across to see a group of them arranging their colourful buckets at the drinking water tap, partially absorbing what he is trying to tell me and partially trying to soak up the environment. But no singers, writers, painters here. I mention old photographs and paintings, if any, and am told that there are some people who are the elderly who would be able to tell me a few things.

An elderly woman comes forward as we enter the interiors of this more than a hundred year old village on the banks of the confluence of Damodar and Konar. She shares how youth of today are absorbed in TV sets and have no respect for their elders. The mela (fair) on the river banks is not quite the same any more as new destinations for it are being sought. Women of their time would cover their faces when they walked. What is happening to our culture?’ she rues. A strange sense of dualism hits me, as I hesitate not to speak too much, almost conscious of the baggage’s I am bringing in.

Still reeling from the previous house visit, where the oldest man in the village through his attempt to explain why he is feeling unwell, is shooed by the younger women in the house, he is ‘almost dead’ they shout in front of him, as our conversation breaks off and he helplessly collapses into his earlier position, while his female relatives replace a mosquito net to cover him and drive us out. I wonder, in spite of this place being a kind of urban hub for a coal and steel city, health care continues to be a mystified service, and diseases have no names to them.

Just before leaving I meet two CCL employees, one retired and old and the other young, and when I ask the older worker if he has any memories or photographs of the time, his eyes become moist with some kind of nostalgia but he is quick to add that it is all with the company. The younger worker shows off his ‘worker ID card’, the older worker shares that the colours have changed, he had different ones.

All along the banks of the rivers is a devastation of sorts. At Kharkhari Colliery, I realize that one would have to dig deep to search the expressions. A mine surveyor speaks of the numerous tunnels underground and the number of kilometers that mine workers walk underneath the surface, he shows me a road map of tunnels which also carry with it the idea of depth. As he talks about the netherworld I can only imagine through pictures, we try to ask him with the help of the map, which villages these tunnels are under, trying to get some kind of direction of the known with the unknown.I realize that to really build that picture of experience and emotion around the charred landscape one would have to look underground. I had only scratched the surface so far.

Tales from a Charred Landscape

The gnarled trees, earth and abanoned structures have been witnesses to dangerous accidents and violent deaths in the past.

1. @ Nagdah where a methane blast killed 50 labourers
2. The memorial at Nagdah
3. Abandoned machines lie like heritage pieces at the site for colony residents who regret mines shutting down, the only viable livelihood left in these parts

A total of 7649 injured and 1656 deaths recorded by the Coal Mine Workers Union in ECL, New Kenda, BCCL, Gajlitaand, BCCL, Baghdih, BCCL, Bhatdih, Nagda, CCL, Central Sauda abd ECL, Shyamsundarpur and WCL areas. Reasons have been subsidence, roof fall, side fall,haulage rope accidents, methane gas blasts, water leakage and flooding in the mines.

Tales from a charred landscape

Predated technologies continue to exist.New pathways in managing wastes still needs to be found. Waste dumping is careless. One is covered in coal dust if one walks through these areas and most residents call it the 'road to hell'.

Tales from a charred landscape

Toxic effluents continue to drain into the river adjacent to the Bokaro Thermal Power Station.

Tales from a charred landscape

Bokaro and Dhanbad situated in the mid stream of the river Damodar have been a hub of industrial activity since the pre Independence period. But the long stay of extractive industries have had untold and devastating impact on the environment here.