It seems that the green conscience of India has not
totally fallen asleep! It is indeed strange and uncharacteristic and a hopeful
flash, at a time, when prime time television draws high TRPs from reality
programmes that portray celebrity swyamvars!
I am referring to the
NDTV-Toyota’s Greenathon in its second year that received overwhelming response
from Bollywood stars, Chief Ministers from different states of India,
corporates and “aam aadami” helping raise Rs. 3.92 crores and lighting up 157
villages across India. Chief Ministers across the country joined hands and
pledged for a greener India. Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit urged the citizens to
adopt a tree each while Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chauhan pledged to
plant 5 crore saplings in the state. As part of the state's massive afforestation
programme, Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik pledged to cover an area of 1 million
hectares with trees; whereas Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah
vowed to restore the Dal Lake and Nagin Lake to their pristine glory. Haryana
CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda vouched for solar power for a greener and cleaner
future and Karnataka CM B S Yeddyurappa guaranteed sustainable development
towards a greener and cleaner state. Others also did their bits. There were
painters who created paintings on the green cause on the sets of Greenathon and
auctioned off their creations , the proceeds for which will go to the green
cause. Actor-model Milind Soman ran 100 kilometers and helped raise a whooping
amount to light up villages. Bollywood “badshahs” adopted villages, as did corporates.
Those of us who did not run miles
along with Milind or painted pictures or adopted villages or even called up to
congratulate those who did the above, also did our bits. A housewife who did
not switch on her favourite soap, a teenager who skipped MTV, an elderly
gentleman who did not mind missing his Spiritual TV, an adolescent who did not
mope because he could not surf between POGO and Cartoon Network and a Reality
TV fanatic who decided to glue onto NDTV because he thought “this” was more real
than his favourite Reality Show-all deserve our salutes. By choosing to watch
the Greenathon they not only rendered a silent but resolute support but also
went on to show that in the darkest chambers of our hearts we recognise crisis
deftly. It has been once again proved that even in the face of corruption,
shallowness, non-chalance, blissful ignorance and alleged collective dumbing
down, Environment stands a chance. Perhaps it is because ,it is too important
for us to be ignored.
EDITORIAL