Kozhikode: Nature's fury will be unprecedented when compromises are made on environment for short-term gains and policies, rules and regulations are overlooked, Puducherry lieutenant governor Kiran Bedi said here on Tuesday.
She was speaking at the 23rd Foundation Day ceremony of Indian Institute of Management – Kozhikode (IIM-K).
The first woman IPS officer of the country was referring to the recent floods, the worst in a century, that battered the state.
At least 223 people lost their lives and nearly 10 lakh people have been displaced.
“Increasing population puts enormous pressure on the land. Sometimes, governments also compromise on rules and regulations. Many disasters are products of such compromises,” she pointed out.
Wherever environment norms are violated such disasters would happen, she said, adding this was not the case of Kerala alone.
“Nature shows its anger in very difficult ways,” she lamented.
“Sometimes, the leaders, be it religious or political, opt for short-term policies. Policies should be in sync conservation of nature. History alone will judge whether decisions were right or wrong. Nature will not spare us, not even the richest.”
She pointed out the natural calamities had devastated the US too.
“Stress on natural resources are increasing. There should be better ways to manage the resources. There is a very difficult situation in Kerala at present. The whole world is coming together for help, but it is not going to be enough. It is time for rebuilding the state, and all those who love Kerala, have come together for it,” Bedi said.
She mentioned that more than 27,000 government employees of Puducherry have contributed a day's salary to the Kerala chief minister's distress relief fund.
Bedi also held an interactive session with the students, IIM-K director Debashis Chatterjee was also present.
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