LEGACY OF SUNDERLAL BAHUGUNAJI

 LEGACY OF  SUNDERLAL BAHUGUNAJI

              After death of a person ,what left behind is not his / her property,wealth but his / her legacy,contribution to the nation building . Sunderlal Bahuguna was a great nationalist , pioneer of environmental movement in India,  who left such a legacy of environmental conservation.

           He was a  follower of Gandhian ideology .Base on it , he started  chipko movement in 1973 in Uttar pradesh (now Uttarakhand). First ,he convinced the villagers about importance of the trees  and their role in ecosystem balance . The movement was a non violent movement against deforestation in Himalayan region. Chipko literally means to hug the trees. Most important feature was women’s participation. Many women hugged the tree and said cut us before cutting the trees. 

            Due to large scale opposition  , government has cancelled the deforestation and put deforestation  moratorium for fifteen years  .   He forced us to remember the Indian culture of nature worship  and he became protector of Himalaya .This movement shaped the later environmental policies in India  and also influence the world.

 

         Along with these , he also raised his voice for empowerment of women and untouchables.

               His contribution will remain evergreen and will  always show us  path of sustainable development .Our political leadership should pay tribute to him by strengthening the environment laws like EIA(environmental impact assessment).

Now its our time to save our mother earth because 

Son of mother earth: has left us  but not his legacy .

 

                                                                Pralay Bharat Sawant