Remembering Mahatma, his philosophy on environment

Neha Walia

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, October 2

Mahatma Gandhi’s famous quote, “The earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs but not every man’s greed”, needs to be pondered over by one and all.

The Gandhian philosophy on the environment was quite similar to that of Jainism that considered nature as a living entity. Though the Father of the Nation never put environment conservation as one of the prime subjects of his cause, his teaching of simple living and high thinking was about leading a lifestyle harmonious with nature.

On his 150th birth anniversary, his biggest contribution to the world, Satyagrah, might as well come to the rescue of the environment as climate change becomes the biggest concern for humanity. Several city-based eco warriors too agree that the time for a Green Satyagrah has come.

“Gandhian principles of cleanliness, of individual civic responsibility, of service to society are indeed valid even today. However with over 17 per cent of global population inhabiting his fathered nation, indeed a social renaissance, such as the groundswell created by the Mahatma’s movement, is imperative to fight climate change and sustain the lives of Bharat’s humanity, “says Gunbir Singh, Chairperson, WWF-India (Punjab).

“Gandhiji may never have used the terms environment protection or sustainable development but it is clear from his words and actions that unrestricted industrialism and materialism and the havoc it has caused on our planet were matters of deep concern. We can all learn so much from the Gandhian vision and philosophy when it comes to reducing consumerism, respecting nature and aiming for sustainable development. Satyagraha against single use plastic and polluted waters is the need of the hour. With his principles of simple living give us a clear path to follow ,if we have any hope of leaving our children with a better tomorrow,” shared Aarushi Verma, Chairperson, FICCI FLO, Amritsar, who have initiated a project called Green Warriors for creating green, sustainable spaces in the city.

Voice of Amritsar in collaboration with Rotary Club West paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri by celebrating the ideologies of both national icons – adopting simple lifestyle that is in harmony with nature. Dedicating the birth anniversaries of the two inspirational leaders, members of VOA and Rotary West held a campaign, Say No to Plastic by distributing 500 cloth bags to the attendees at the special ceremony inside Company Bagh held by District Administration.

Joined by students of Springdales, who performed a Nukkad Natak on the harmful effects of plastic on environment, the entire campaign was conceived as part of larger activity calendar of VOA for eco-awareness and conservation. “We, as an organisation, have always stood for the cause of environment and celebrating the Gandhian principle of cleanliness and living in harmony with nature, we are promoting the use of cloth bags and shunning of plastic products, especially single use plastic products.