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Monks 'Dilemma
Monks' Dilemma
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Deepti felt bored and interrupted, "Do not brood over the past which is gone and is not going to return. I see some good greenery on the hills at a distance, may be a few kilometres. We should go and see that relic of the past. Vijay said, "The place is not very far. We can go by jeep up to the foot of the hills."
This diverted the conservation topic. Deepak started again, "While returning from fields we often found him outside his hut. He would ask us to sit with him if we were not in a hurry. He would give us diluted curd drink and tell very engrossing and enlightening stories and his anecdotes from his own real life experiences of his long tenure in state forest service. During summer vacations we sat longer with him. After our eighth standard examination when I asked about the plight of receding and diminishing forests he explained all about the causes and remedial measures, needed. Do you remember, Vijay?"
Vijay, "He was a philanthropist to the core and an ardent environmentalist. He tried his best to educate people by going to villages and talking to them at their chaupals. He kept on writing and meeting the officers concerned from the collector to the chief secretary, from panchas, sarpanchas, MLAs, MPS to ministers and chief ministers repeatedly to follow and abide by the established scientific principles. He continued to hammer till his last breath that forests should not be exploited beyond their carrying capacity which is the annual growth rate of the forest and that the rights of people in settlement records were for the limited numbers then but the numbers have increased four to five times. He impressed that exercise of rights should be limited so as not to destroy the very object. His efforts were all in vain. Politicians are not generally concerned about forest or environment or even welfare of the country. Their only concern is selfish interest to keep intact their chairs and position which depends on vote bank politics. They never take decisions which annoy the voters even if it is harmful to voters in the long run.
Deepti was delighted to see varieties of trees she had never seen before. Vijay knew names and uses of most of them. The main species were dhaura, siris, semal, palas, amaltas, kachnar, khair, salar, gurjan, aonla, bahera, Mahua, tendu, khirni and others. He told that the tribal people did not cut many of these species since they provided edible seeds, flowers, fruits, gums, resins, fibres and medicines for their own use as well as for sale. They were very much dependent on forests. But ever since the government started the populist scheme of food for work they got alienated as they lost dependence on the forest and started cutting such trees which had sustained them for generations.
Deepti pointed to a tree at some distance covered entirely with beautiful scarlet orange flowers. Vijay said, "It is not the tree that is bearing these flowers. It is Loranthus, a dangerous climber, a parasite which has engulfed the tree and which will smother and eventually kill the tree. Deepak let us go and cut and remove the climber. We did this many times in our school days. Vijay as a habit always brought an axe whenever he ventured out in a forest."
Deepti applauded, "I am happy that you destroyed the parasite which would have otherwise killed the benevolent Mahua tree. The Loranthus which was shining, sitting on the tree was not at all good. It was enjoying its glamour at the
