2021 Kumbh Mela Is going To Violate The Forest Conservation Act

Kumbh Mela, the largest religious gathering in the world continues to fascinate every soul on earth. It happens once every 3 years in one of these locations on the banks of the corresponding rivers; Ganga in Haridwar, Godavari in Nasik, Kshipra in Ujjain and Sangam (confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers) in Allahabad. The Ardh (half) Kumbh is held every 6 years in Haridwar and Allahabad. The Purna (full) Kumbh and the Maha Kumbh (great/supreme pitcher) are held every 12 years and every 144 years, respectively, only in Allahabad. The 2021 Kumbh mela will be held in Haridwar, Uttrakhand for which the government has started preparing already. Millions of Pilgrims, Sadhus, tourists from different parts of the world will come together to bathe in the Holy river Ganges. While we are in between a lockdown, the government has planned to spend over 4500 crores for the largest congregation of the world.

Religious gathering of devotees is a sight to behold, it is literally like a temporary city which is being set up, but every good thing comes at a great price too. The Ganges in India is one of the most polluted rivers. It is also a life support for millions of Indians. The Corona Virus Lockdown has made River Ganga cleaner to an extent that Gangetic River Dolphin was visible again in parts of Ganga, which is a sign of a healthy ecosystem. But we don’t know how long that will last. With the onset of Kumbh mela next year, millions will take a bath in the holy river, the end result of which leaves the river choked up with chemical pollutants. There is a practice of open defecation which pollutes the ground water and the use of soaps in river water. A reported study states that the transmission of Blood borne diseases is a possibility in a secret ritual where thousands of aspiring sadhus undergo a shaving process.

A meeting was organised by National Mission for clean Ganga (NMCE) on April over video conferencing to discuss about the funds Uttrakhand government would need for community toilets and Urinals in the Kumbh Mela. It was decided that 16,075 community toilets and 20,000 community Urinals will be build for the event.  However, the decision was deffered on the grounds that other components of the plan like making arrangements for dustbins and solid waste management was not included. The dates for next meeting has not been decided yet.

Another major issue that troubles prominent environmentalists is the decision of temporary transferring lands of Rajaji Tiger Reserve and Narendra Nagar Forest Division to Kumbh Mela Samiti for the Kumbh Mela next year. Uttrakhand forest department has decided to temporarily transfer 778 hectares of Reserve Land for 9 months starting from Sept 1st 2020 to 31st May 2021. The land will be used to construct ‘akhadas’, parking, police check posts and health camps. The proposal, which has been sent to the Ministry for approval of giving lands of reserved forests for non-forest uses violates The Wildlife (protection) Act, 1972 and Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980. Moreover, it also goes against the advisory of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF & CC) which states that ‘for non-forest activity, the forest land could only be given for 15 days and it doesn’t include Protected areas’.

The state Government however wants an exemption from this section and said that Kumbh Mela is a significant Hindu tradition and therefore should be considered an exceptional case.

The creation of facilities for devotees will destroy the natural habitat of wildlife, it will also lead pollution of all kinds, noise pollution being the most dangerous for animals. For those of you who don’t know, The Rajaji National Park is a Tiger reserve which has a significant population of Royal Bengal tiger, an endangered species, beside other animals. The use of Reserved land for non forest purposes will cause an irreplaceable damage to the rich biodiversity and wildlife wealth. The authorities have said that there will be no felling of trees and wildlife mitigation measures will be taken, however, one would be too naive to not see the damages that have been previously done by gatherings on such a bigger scale. Our government right now is least concerned about environment issues and their main agenda is to collect the revenue.  India is a land of cultures, traditions and festivals, and it is imperative for us to understand that religious traditions and environment concerns go hand in hand.

Though the forest officials are quite uncertain about the Kumbh as the state’s financial condition is not good due to Lockdown, and congregations across the world are also being cancelled. The head of all akhadas have stopped the preparations of kumb in Haridwar due to Corona Virus Scare. But there is still time for Kumbh Mela, and we don’t know what the decision of Ministry will be, we can hope whatever steps the government takes, moving on it doesn’t cause much harm to the wildlife and environment. We don’t know if the Uttrakhand Government will have the capacity to take responsibility of the negligence of Environment and Forests at the hour of need. The Festivals and congregations may come and go, but there is No Planet-B for us. Let’s be responsible tourist and a concerned citizen of this country.