Task Force Report - Govind Ballabh Pant Institute of Himalayan ...

sustainable bio- and non-timber forest produce
(NTFP) prospecting, and for eco-tourism;
Zone of fertile river valleys at lower altitudes
should be utilized for agricultural production
but conversion of agricultural land to other
uses in such zones should not be allowed.
Likewise sub-zones for terraced agriculture
should be earmarked for unique crops, organic
agriculture, horticulture, agro-forestry, and
better managed shifting cultivation (Jhum);
River zones for decentralized electricity
production should be earmarked to meet
the household and small industrial power
requirements;
Zone of urban spaces: no construction should
be allowed in areas having slope above 30 o , in
areas that fall in hazardous zones, and areas
falling on spring, aquifer lines and first order
streams. Efficient sewage & municipal waste
management systems should be mandatory in
such places;
Zone of industries should only be in nonfragile
areas and include only those activities
favourable to mountainous conditions, such
as processing non-toxic, preferably locally
available raw materials, and investment that
generate local employment;
In order to safeguard the Himalayan water
regime, instead of project wise environmental
impact assessments, Strategic Environmental
Assessment (SEA) should be mandatory,
concurrently developing the required human
resource for carrying out SEAs;
Mountain sensitive land use policy should be
developed and laws should be made stringent
to help minimize erosion and silt flow,
facilitate functional land consolidation, and
regulate mining irrespective of size to reduce
environmental degradation;
The solution to many connectivity related
problems of the IHR seems to lie in finding
and supporting road making technologies
that are sensitive to, and also in conformity to
the characteristics of mountain ecology and
geology. Ridge alignment rather than along
river valleys, efficient side drains, bio proofing
of slopes below and above roads (tea bushes,
bamboos and the like that bind the soil through
intricate latticework of roots as well as a thick
canopy that arrests raindrops from directly
hitting the soil), location specific designs, and
loops (networks interlinked in the region itself)
are obvious choices that must be preferred;
Planning for eco-friendly disposal of municipal
solid waste must be the first charge of every IHR
state. IHR towns cannot make garbage dumps
of river basins and hill slopes. Awareness
raising of this need and skill development
programmes are required at every level for the
key stakeholders for this;
IHR States and local government must
empower themselves to draw up eco-sensitive
habitat plans, especially for disaster prone
areas, fix zones for various activities, building
codes, ownership codes, and strictly enforce
implementation; and
Since a demand for changing over from firewood
to LPG is emerging, the Task Force recommends,
all the IHR states, should capitalize on it.
Increasing the availability of cylinders,
especially the conveniently transportable
or head loadable sizes, options for localized
piped gas connections; and making LPG use
mandatory for all hotels and eateries, whatever
the size are corollary recommendations.
Human capital and skill development issues:
If restrictions on the free use of natural
resources are to be worked upon, alternate
strategies for livelihood generation, beyond
agriculture, horticulture and animal husbandry
must be designed. In concrete terms, this would
translate into large, focused investments in
education and skill development. The human
capital of the IHR must be enabled to tap
technology to increase the output of traditional
production, provide specialized services and
even high scientific research into bio sciences,
energy, materials and information technology;
In whatever manner development and welfare
is viewed, the need for measures that directly
address the indicators of development and
welfare is evident. While it is up to the
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Report of the Task Force