The National Summit on Revival and Rejuvenation of Bharathappuzha River Basin organised by Nila Vicharavedi at JNU, New Delhi, on March 24 calls for a River Basin Authority for the cause
Putting forward a five-point action plan aimed at rejuvenating inter-state river Bharathappuzha, the Bharathappuzha National Summit culminated at JNU, New Delhi. The seminar also called for the formation of a River-basin Protection Authority for Bharathappuzha. The National Summit on Revival and Rejuvenation of Bharathappuzha River Basin was organised by Nila Vicharavedi at JNU Convention Centre on March 24. Formation of a River basin Protection Authority, Conservation of Biodiversity, Renovation of Ghats, Rejuvenation of water bodies and a special Commission to study the issues pertaining to Bharathappuzha similar to the Gadgil Commission, were the main demands put forth in the summit. Inaugurating the summit, Prof M Jagadesh Kumar Vice-Chancellor, JNU, said that the university will endorse such initiatives to protect Bharathappuzha, the river which nurtured the culture of Kerala, and make special arrangement to facilitate studies on the river Bharathappuzha. Dr Prem C Jain, Chairman, Indian Green Building Council, delivered the keynote address in the inaugural session. Dr Koushal Kumar and Dr Nandakumar Janardhanan (professors, JNU) also spoke on the occasion.
Bharathappuzha aka Nila is the second longest river in Kerala. With a catchment area of over six thousand square kilometres, the river provides drinking water to about two hundred villages, and supports livelihood of several lakhs of people. The river and the basin today face acute water shortage and many feel that it is on the way to extinction. In the seminar, Dr P Pramod (SACON), V Ramanujan Thampi (IWMP), Dr Jayasree and Arjith Misra (WWF) expressed their views on the topics ‘Flora and Fauna of River Nila’, ‘Overview of Socio-Economics’, and ‘Hydrology Issues’.
Moderated by Prof Sanjeev Sharma (JNU), the afternoon session was attended by P Vijayan IPS, Prasant Nair IAS, Madhavan Namboothiri, S Prabha Shankar, Lalit Bokkolia (Forest Ministry) and Shyam Kishore Sahay, the editor, Loksabha TV. The focus of the discussion was on setting up a Community-based River rejuvenation action plan.
J Nandakumar, the national convenor of Prajna Pravah and the founder of Nila Vicharavedi, inaugurated the valedictory session. Shri Aravind Menon, the Co-ordinator Namami Gange, delievered keynote address on the cultural background of Indian Rivers. The organisers of the event, Vipin Koodiyedathu, P N Jayakrishnan, Pradeep Nambiar also spoke at the concluding session.
Speaking to Organiser, Shri J Nandakumar said, “Whatever the culture remaining in Kerala today, of which we are proud, is the gift of Bharathappuzha. Our Philosophy, art, literature, science, craft etc took birth and flourished on the banks of Nila. Perhaps, it is the only river named after our nation Bharat, that too in the southern part of the country, in Kerala. So the rejuvenation of Bharathapuzha is none less than the revival of the Hindu culture of Kerala. Besides, the environmental importance, this mission has a cultural aspect too. ” He is the founder of Nila Vicharavedi, which is aimed at connecting people who are involved in water resource conservation world-over in order to protect the river Nila. Shri Nandakumar said that the organisation will take further follow up actions to implement the suggestions and recommendations proposed in the summit.
The Summit, organised in co-ordination with the Union Ministry for Forests Environment and Climate Change and Union Ministry of Water Resources, was attended by the delegates from JNU, DU, SANCO, Indian Green Building Council, WWF, Narmada Samagra, Namami Gange, IWMP, National River Directorate, NIYAS, J&K Study Centre, Calicut University, Kannur University, Cochin University, and Kerala Fisheries University and students from around 20 Indian universities. — Organiser Bureau
