When Cities were Nature's Heaven - Harini Nagendra
Kakatiya University Warangal- Degree General English- Sem 5- unit 2
When Cities were Nature's Heaven
Harini Nagendra
About the author
Harini Nagendra is an Indian ecologist from Bangalore. Nagendra did her PhD in 1997 from the Indian Institute of Science in Ecological Sciences.
Her research focuses on issues of biodiversity, ecology and development, and urban sustainability. Her well-known book is Nature in the City: Banglore in the Past, Present, and Future (2016). She also co-authored the book "Cities and Canopies : Trees of Indian Cities” (2019) with Seema Mundoli.
About the text
She digs into Bengaluru’s past ecological history, beginning in the sixth century CE, in her well-researched book Nature in the City: Banglore in the Past, Present, and Future (2016). The book elaborates on how the dwellers in the Garden City (Bengaluru/Bangalore) understand that nature and cities can coexist and constantly try to preserve lakes and trees. Nagendra examines the transformation of the city into a metropolitan city (India's IT hub) with traffic congestion, diminishing lakes, skyrocketing buildings, and the act of cutting trees in the name of road widening and urban development.
Inscriptions on stone and copper plates:- The writer points out that these inscriptions show that the starting point for a new village was a lake or a tank, which saved the villagers' lives in drought conditions. She demonstrates that the inscriptions on stone and copper plates show that early residents had a close relationship with nature and maintained a three-dimensional landscape consisting of the lakes, the surrounding irrigated and dry land, the wells above and the trees below.
1.Declining sources of water.
Early residents focused not only on water but also on greenery. Each settlement was greened with a gundathope, a small plot of land planted with fruiting trees, jackfruit, mango, and tamarind.
2.Citizens nurturing nature:-
After bringing water from other places, people in Bangalore forgot about the importance of their local water bodies. Harini's study has shown that Bangalore still needs water very much.The city has grown enough that piped water from distant rivers can no longer supply all its needs.
Successive rulers from the 16th century onwards, and common citizens planted millions of trees over centuries. Each settlement was greened with a gundathope. Gundathope is a land commonly planted with fruiting trees, jackfruit, mango and tamarind – which provided shade, fruits, firewood for cooking, grazing material for cattle, and occasionally timber as well. The practice of greening continued from British rule to late 20th century.
3. Soaring temperatures and rising air pollution
The relationship between nature and dwellers began to weaken in the 21st century. Trees were felled for roads and other development projects. Citizens realized the connection between fewer trees and the soaring temperature as the city became hotter.
4..Social media to the rescue.
In the 21st century, Honnamma Govindayya, a 90-year-old woman, fought against real estate developers to protect a local park and won the case in the Supreme Court. Citizens' protests forced the government to withdraw its decision to build a steel flyover, which would have destroyed thousands of trees. These movements are supported by social media.
For the future, one can learn from Bangalore, which has successfully overcome the effects of such unbalanced urban planning.
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