President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday called on people to accord equal importance to development and environment as she recalled the relationship her parents shared with nature as she was growing up in rural Odisha.
Inaugurating the two-day National Conference on Environment – 2025 at Vigyan Bhawan, she asked people to ponder if it was justified to destroy natural resources that human beings could not create.
Recounting the early years of her life in an Odisha village, she said her family had to rely on dry wood for cooking due to the unavailability of resources. “My father and mother used to collect wood. They would then cut them (into smaller pieces) and make them worth burning. I used to see every day that my father would bow down before the logs before chopping them. I used to ask my father, ‘Why do you pray before cutting them?’ He would tell me that he was seeking forgiveness,” the President said.
Murmu said her father would tell her that these wood pieces were once part of a tree that gave fruits, flowers, air and water. “Now these logs have grown older and dried. Even then, they are helping us,” she said.
She saw a similar gesture during farming also. “When I used to go to the farm with my father, he used to pray to the earth before tilling the soil. I asked why? Earth is our mother; she bears so much. There are lots of insects also in the soil. They will also be hurt so I am asking for forgiveness, my father told,” Murmu said.
She also recalled a question by some people which had a huge impact on her views on environment. “I was going somewhere by road and we noticed some small hillocks are missing. Some people said they have been used up for other works. Then someone asked me if we cannot make stones or hillocks, why break them? I did not have an answer to that. If we cannot make something, why destroy it? We need development but also need to stop environmental destruction,” Murmu said.
“A large part of my life has been spent in rural surroundings – amidst greenery, trees, plants, animals, birds and rivers and ponds. The district I come from has the Similipal Biosphere Reserve. Similipal Tiger Reserve is also there, which is the only natural habitat of melanistic tigers,” Murmu said, adding that, “I got a special opportunity to express my natural attachment to biodiversity when in the year 2002 I was given independent charge of the Department of Fisheries and Animal Resources Development in the state government of Odisha as a Minister of State. I had established many Livestock Aid Centres then. Work done with compassion for animals and birds gives me a lot of satisfaction.”
Murmu highlighted the intrinsic relationship that indigenous forest dwelling communities share with the environment.
“People of our tribal community have maintained coordination with nature for centuries. Our tribal brothers and sisters have been taking care of the surrounding environment, trees, plants and animals in every aspect of their lives. We should take inspiration from their lifestyle. Today, when the whole world is trying to solve the problem of global warming and climate change, the lifestyle of the tribal community becomes even more exemplary,” she said.
“There is a natural bond between water, forest and people. I am very happy to know that the ministry of environment has recently launched a campaign related to this bond. The aim of this campaign is to rejuvenate the ecological connection of forests, rivers and water sources. I have been told that special sessions related to water and forest will also be organized in this conference,” she emphasised.
It is people’s moral responsibility to provide a clean environment to coming generations, President Murmu said on Saturday while also highlighting that citizens should contemplate what kind of air their children are breathing; what water they are drinking and whether they are able to experience the natural world.
“Elders in every family worry about which school or college their children will study in, and what career they will choose. This worry is justified. But, we all also have to think about what kind of air our children will breathe, what kind of water they will get to drink, whether they will be able to hear the sweet sounds of birds or not, whether they will be able to experience the beauty of lush green forests or not,” she said.
“It is our moral responsibility to provide a legacy of a clean environment to the coming generations. For this, we will have to adopt an environmentally conscious and sensitive lifestyle so that the environment is not only protected but also enhanced and the environment can become more vibrant. Balancing clean environment and modern development is both an opportunity and a challenge,” she said.
The President said that Indians believed that nature, like a mother, nourishes us, and we should respect and protect nature. “The basis of the Indian heritage of development is nourishment, not exploitation; protection, not elimination. Following this tradition, we want to move forward toward a developed India,” Murmu said while noting that over the last decade, India has achieved several examples of early completion of its Nationally Determined Contributions as per international agreements.
“The historic decisions given by NGT have a wide impact on our lives, our health, and the future of our earth. She urged the institutions associated with the environment management eco-system and citizens to continuously strive for environmental protection and promotion,” she said.
Speaking on India’s role as a leader in environmental initiatives globally, Murmu said: “Our country and the entire world community have to follow a path that is environment friendly. Only then will humanity make real progress…We all have to make India a developed nation by the year 2047 where the air, water, greenery, and prosperity attract the entire world community,”
The National Conference on ‘Environment – 2025’, being organised by NGT, aims to bring together key stakeholders to discuss pressing environmental challenges, share best practices, and collaborate on future action plans for environmental management. The conference is expected to provide certain action points for policy making.