Lok Sabha Election 2019: Parties colourblind on green issues

Extreme weather events, triggered by long-term climate change, have the potential to hit India where it really hurts: Agriculture and farm incomes. According to the finance ministry's economic survey 2017-18, annual farm incomes could reduce by up to 25 per cent in the country's unirrigated areas on account of climate change. The weather getting hotter could also mean 10 per cent lower yields of Kharif crop in unirrigated areas.

Meanwhile, a global report released at the World Economic Forum ranked India 177th out of 180 countries on environment performance. The report, which was dismissed as arbitrary by the government, attributed India's low rank to the high number of deaths linked to air pollution.

However, despite ecological alarms ringing louder, the 2019 Lok Sabha election campaign seems large devoid of any meaningful discourse on these issues, which are not only affecting India's economy but are also resulting in poor health and deaths.

Promises on clean air and forest conservation

The escalation of the air pollution crisis over the last five years has prompted political parties to include the agenda in their manifestos. Experts said it's a good beginning but nothing more than a small step at the moment.
The BJP-led NDA government had unveiled the National Clean Air Programme in January this year. The plan's target is to reduce air pollution by 20-30 per cent by 2024, across 102 cities where air quality has continuously exceeded national standards. In their vision document, the BJP promised to convert NCAP into a "mission". However, it then only reiterated the targets of the already launched plan in its "vision document".

However, one claim in the BJP's vision document has left environmentalists amused. The party claimed that by through speed and effectiveness in issuing forest and environmental clearances for projects, it has added about 9,000 sq.kms to the country's forest cover. Typically, most development projects seek green clearances also need permissions to fell trees or forests. In lieu of the felling, the projects' proponents have to plant double the number of trees felled. This means the BJP's claim of having added 9,000 sq.km on account of project clearances defies logic, the environmentalists said.

The Congress, meanwhile, has promised a reversal of major environmental policy changes made by the NDA. The party termed these changes as "dilutions and distortions to environmental legislations". Key among the promises is a rollback of the coastal zone regulation (CRZ) notification brought about by the current regime. "The coast will be preserved without affecting livelihood opportunities of fishing communities," the party's manifesto had said.

It referred to a CRZ notification recently issued by the NDA government, which was panned by fishermen as being pro-industry and pro-real estate.

In addition, the Congress also promised an overarching, independent environment protection authority (EPA), which will monitor and enforce environmental standards and regulations, and will tackle air pollution as a national public health emergency. The EPA is proposed to replace other bodies that currently exercise jurisdiction in this sector. However, the promise on EPA isn't new; it has been in the works since the second tenure of the UPA government.

Forest rights judgment and electoral impact

In February this year, the Supreme Court ordered the eviction of nearly 1.5 million forest dwellers and tribals whose claims to land titles and cultivation under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, were rejected. During the course of the final hearings, the Centre did not come out vehemently in support of the Act and the multi-tier process of settling rights. The SC's judgment and Centre's indifference copped severe criticism and led to large-scale protests among tribal communities.

And though the apex court stayed its order a week later and asked states to look into the high rate of rejection of claims, the damage was already done. Congress president Rahul Gandhi targeted the BJP over its indifference regarding the act and directed Congress governments in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan — all states with large tribal populations — to file review petitions in the court.

Rights organisations working with tribal communities also said the SC judgment and Centre's stance will go against them in the current elections. Advocacy group Community Forest Rights-Learning and Advocacy (CFR-LA) said in an analysis that forest rights and tribal rights could impact results in as many as 133 Lok Sabha constituencies.

These 133 constituencies have been categorised in five groups ranging from critical to low in terms of damage done. Of these, the BJP had won 79 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The remaining 54 included 17 to the Biju Janata Dal, six by Shiv Sena, five each to the Congress and YSR Congress, and four to the Trinamool Congress. However, the Congress stood second in 83 of these seats.

With only a handful of leaders raising issues of FRA in their campaigns, these topics have largely flown below the radar. It is difficult to gauge whether the undercurrents of discontentment and resentment against the government run deep, and only time will tell whether they translate into political change.