The dark years of the green revolution
One of India's greatest challenges was undoubtedly to feed its exploding population as it freed itself from two centuries of British colonialism in 1947. Its strategy: to organize intensive agriculture, drenched in pesticides, introduced just one year after independence. As a result, three quarters of Rajasthan's drinking water wells are now contaminated to levels exceeding WHO recommendations. This period, which reached its peak in the 1960s, has been called the "Green Revolution". In arid Rajasthan, it did even more damage than elsewhere, as it pumped up water that was already scarce. On top of this, Rajasthan is facing a major desertification phenomenon. It is estimated that 60% of its soils are cracking and being destroyed.
The "Green Revolution" has also had a considerable social impact. With landslides due to unsuitable farming, heavy pollution and its share of poisoning, water scarcity and shrinking cultivation areas, the situation of farmers is increasingly precarious. Rajasthan has not escaped the wave of farmer suicides that has swept India since the 1990s, and which the government has been unable to control.
The last few years have seen the emergence of organic farming, which is still in a minority, but is terribly determined. The Green World Foundation in Chomu, on the outskirts of Jaipur, combines ecotourism and agriculture. At this organic farm, visitors can sleep in an adobe house inspired by the traditional houses of Rajasthan. Much more than a vacation spot, the farm has already welcomed 8,000 farmers and taught them the precepts of organic farming. Could this be the start of another green revolution?
The first environmentalist people
Rajasthan has been inhabited by a community of ecologists since the 15thcentury . They are the Bishnoi, a group of 700,000 people who follow the precepts laid down by their spiritual master, Jambeshwar Bhagavan.
Respect for life, in all its forms, guides the community. One of the foundations of the movement is not to kill any animal, and not to cut down any green tree. Like many other Indians, Bishnoi are vegetarians. Another measure is to share 10% of harvests with wildlife.
The community is scarred by the massacre of 1730, when followers protected with their lives trees that the maharaja had sent his soldiers to cut down. A total of 363 people perished. The ruler, impressed by the Bishnoi's devotion to nature, ordered the protection of their territory. Even today, they are ready to sacrifice their lives to save a living creature, as in 2000, when one of them interposed himself between a gazelle and poachers, ending up buried alongside his protege.
The thirsty Rajasthan
Droughts are becoming more frequent and more intense. In 2024, the town of Churu once again recorded a heat peak in excess of 50°C. This region with its semi-desert climate receives 90% of its precipitation in a few days, and has to make do with a few drops the rest of the year. Traditionally, locals have designed basins to store this water for the rest of the year, a technique known as water harvesting. But these ancestral methods are no longer sufficient, as the climate becomes increasingly uncertain. Lack of infrastructure, water pollution and overexploitation of groundwater, mainly by agriculture, which pumps 80% of the water, are driving the entire country to thirst. The drought of 2019 was followed by the exceptionally early drought of 2022. It forced India to stop exporting wheat to ensure the food security of its population, threatening that of the world as a whole. These crises are set to become increasingly frequent, as it is estimated that 40% of the Indian population will not have sufficient access to water by 2050. An Indian government report predicts that 21 major Indian cities, including New Delhi, will have exhausted their resources by 2030.
Waste higher than the Taj Mahal
Everywhere, waste accumulates to form mountains. The one at New Delhi's Ghazipur landfill is over 75 metres high, higher than the Taj Mahal. A paradise for rats, it has become a living hell for local residents, who are exposed to numerous illnesses, in addition to the toxic smells and fumes emanating from the pockets of gas formed.
Waste is the country's third biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, with cars in first place. This makes Delhi the most polluted region in the world, according to the WHO. In addition to contaminating the air, the country's numerous landfill sites also contaminate drinking water supplies, as well as rivers such as the Yamuna, the sacred river that flows through New Delhi and supplies water to 57 million people.
However, in view of the scale of the problem, the fight is still fragile. In particular, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a "Mission Clean India" campaign in 2014, although it has been sharply criticized for its budget, which is deemed insufficient, and for some inadequate infrastructures. The program includes street cleaning, solid waste management and recycling. As a result, 80,000 neighborhoods now have access to recycling. Since July 2022, several single-use plastics have also been banned, including cups, straws and plastic cigarette packaging.
When the air becomes unbreathable
In 2023, of the 10 most polluted cities in the world, 9 were in India. Indian industry alone is responsible for more than half of this pollution. Vehicles account for over a quarter of emissions. The remaining quarter is due to various factors, such as the incessant practice of agricultural slash-and-burn, or urban fires, like the one at the notorious Ghazipur landfill, which went up in flames in 2020, thickening the heavy cloud of pollution hanging over New Delhi. The Indian capital, with the most polluted air in the world in 2023, according to the Swiss organization IQAir, regularly closes its schools during pollution peaks. Heavy goods vehicles are regularly banned from entering the capital, and construction sites and thermal power plants are brought to a halt. The population may be asked to stay indoors, and the use of air conditioning is prohibited.
Attempting to take the problem in hand, India launched the National Clean Air Programme in 2019, with the aim of reducing certain pollutant emissions by 20% to 30% by 2024. In view of the disappointing results, the program has been postponed until the end of 2026. Other local measures have been implemented, such as alternate traffic in Delhi and stricter vehicle pollution standards. The growing use of renewable energies should also help curb the problem. They already account for a quarter of India's energy mix, making the country one of the world leaders, with solar, hydropower, wind and geothermal energy in particular. This share is set to increase, as the Indian government announced in 2015 an ambitious program to develop renewable energy, particularly solar. Rajasthan, with its 300 to 330 days of sunshine a year, is a good pupil in this respect.
The country of a hundred national parks
India has over a hundred national parks, five of which are in Rajasthan. The oldest of these is Desert National Park, created in 1980. It covers more than 3,000 km2 of the Thar Desert. This fragile ecosystem is home to many bird species, including the Black-headed Bustard(Ardeotis nigriceps), a bird endemic to India and on the 2012 list of the world's 100 most endangered species.
Ranthambore National Park covers an area of 400 km2 of deciduous forest. In what was once the hunting ground of the maharajas of Jaipur, biodiversity now flourishes, so much so that the park is reputed to be one of the best places to observe wildlife in India. Bengal tigers are no longer hunted here, but are instead being managed as part of " Project Tiger ", which has increased the national cat population from 1,200 in the 1970s to 3,600 by 2022. Tigers are also protected in Sariska National Park, which was also once a hunting reserve. In fact, it was the first reserve in the world to successfully reintroduce tigers!
In Keoladeo Ghana National Park, the birds are king, so much so that it is considered one of the world's most important ornithological sites. There are 370 species, including the rare and highly endangered Siberian crane.
