KOCHI: Nature is deceiving, as can be its most ardent advocates. But frailty could not mask Madhav Gadgil’s grit and uncompromising principles, which laid the foundations for the conservation of the Western Ghats. Every time hills slipped, heavy rains ravaged highlands or floodwaters inundated coastal belts, his warnings reverberated across the state.
In championing community-based ecological conservation, he had his fingers on the pulse of humanity and nature, and furthered a coexistence based on mutual respect and sustainable practices.
The Madhav Gadgil committee report submitted in 2011, which classified the Western Ghats into three ecologically sensitive zones (ESZs), recommended prohibition of mining, polluting industries and development activities to protect the treasure trove of biodiversity. It set off a maelstrom of reactions. The Catholic Church, led by its clergy, even took out a mock funeral procession opposing his recommendations.
The government constituted the Kasturirangan panel and later the Oommen V Oommen panel to water down his counsel. But Gadgil was unmoved. His warnings on the catastrophe that could be the result of compromising on conservation proved prophetic in 2018.
Referring to the great deluge that year, Gadgil pointed to serious deficiencies in the country’s flood-forecasting system. “It is said Kerala had no idea which places will be inundated on releasing water from dams.
Some students of the Indian Institute of Science, whose houses were located on the banks of the Pampa River, conveyed the horrific experiences of the flood: Their parents trapped in houses with the first floor submerged. If authorities had started releasing water early, the intensity of the flood could have been mitigated,” he said.
The floodwaters claimed 483 lives and caused extensive damage to infrastructure and the environment. Then came the 2019 flood and Kavalappara landslide, followed by the Pettimudi earthslip in 2020 and the Wayanad landslides of 2024 -- each tragedy reminding Kerala of the urgent need to conserve nature.
Every time disaster struck, Gadgil continued reminding those concerned about the need to protect the hills. He expressed concern over the SilverLine rail project and development of Sathram airport in Idukki. He described the Western Ghats as a treasure trove of natural diversity.
Gadgil reiterated that unscientific land use and functioning of quarries near ESZs had increased the pace of natural disasters in Kerala. That conversion of land for a single crop in the high ranges had increased the possibility of landslides. He argued that any development project should be implemented only after taking the opinion of the local populace.
Concerned by the recurring natural disasters, Gadgil told TNIE that Kerala could have averted such unfortunate incidents if his report was implemented. “What we had said in the report was based on the honest collection of scientific evidence.
However, certain vested interests that wanted to make a quick buck by damaging the ecology campaigned against the report and it was sabotaged,” he said. Gadgil reminded authorities of the need for a database of natural resources in an areas, and the importance of local residents having a say in its extraction and rationing. “We should ensure that resources are not overexploited,” he said.
Surprisingly, he favoured the idea of controlled culling of wild animals harmful to human life. “India is the only country with legislation to protect wild animals. I think it is irrational, foolish, unconstitutional and nothing to be proud of. No other country protects wild animals outside of its national parks,” Gadgil told TNIE.