Growing concerns surrounding the environment and climate change must not only become a part of election manifestoes but also decide the verdict. The issue should have a top-of-the-mind recall for Indian voters

The great Indian elections are just round the corner, scheduled to be held in seven phases from April 11 to May 19, covering 543 constituencies to constitute the 17th Lok Sabha. The grand event will have a rivetting impact on the country with its bureaucracy, population and administrative machinery being stretched to its full limit.

The phenomenal democratic exercise caters to not only the hopes and aspirations of millions of Indians but is a once-in-five-years event where political parties and their leaders recommit themselves to the service of the nation. As sops, subsidies and promises flow unhindered during this time, one cannot but wonder how environment and climate change get a cursory mention in the campaign speeches of political parties. Party manifestoes — the mainstay of any party’s commitment towards the electorate — have largely become stereotypical and repetitive. Gone are the days of excitement when one would explore the promises and initiatives assured by the party and look forward to their implementation if the party rode to power. Assurances in today’s manifestoes are feeble and lack the push even if a party assumes power or not. Burning issues pertaining to climate change and environment are the main sufferers in these documents as they are relegated to the back burner and are instituted into the document only as a formality.

The Congress’ manifesto released this week is an apt example. The document makes an extremely generalised reference to climate change and how the party would attend to it. Further, there’s a lack of depth in the assurance. This shows how the drafting committee probably failed to grasp the gravity of the problem.

Almost all political parties fight the elections based on populist measures and dole-outs. Thanks to this never-ending competition to woo the voters, the State and Central treasuries are not only getting emptied but real issues such as climate change are also being ignored. Owing to the lack of awareness, people, too, are playing hand-in-glove with the campaigners, forgetting that for some short-run benefits and gains, they are giving up on the security of a climate change proof future.

Unfortunately, it is in the best interest of political entities to keep the voters in the lurch about the real issues. Hence, there is never a change in this pattern. To make matters worse, even non-government and not-for-profit bodies, who pride themselves for the social service they render, are doing nothing sizeable when it comes to educating the voters on climate-related issues. India prides itself on being an emerging economic superpower that has high levels of technically qualified and educated people. But sadly, this does not reflect sufficiently when one observes its polity and processes. The level of education is directly proportionate to the level of awareness. Therefore, it is puzzling how a fairly educated population is allowing essential issues like that of climate change to get buried in the last pages of the manifesto. These subjects relating to environment must feature in the top five subjects on which every party and leader’s contribution and performance is evaluated and ranked.

Certainly, it is not the same case with some countries around the world. Environmental issues form the “national strategies” of political parties in many countries. These parties are obliged to discuss and debate at length their climate change strategies before experts and provide sustainable solutions, which are implementable, once they come to power. The United States presidential elections slated for year 2020 is a good example where candidates and parties are feverishly putting together their strategies on how to tackle climate change. This because an aware population of America would like to know how the environment would be cared for and herein lies the lesson for India.

Political parties and their leaders only play what the people want to hear. The more the people focus on material benefits and free sops, more will the focus shift to those subjects. Instead, if the population becomes aware of its environmental predicaments and demands an action plan from contestants on a priority basis, parties will have no other option but to respect people’s wish and deliver an actionable plan to pull the country back from the brink of climate change- induced disasters.

But how will this take place? Who will generate the much-needed consciousness among the people?  As much surprising this may sound, it is the Government’s responsibility to show the correct path. It must educate the people that only a nation that cares for its nature and natural resources is one that truly prospers and progresses. This course-correction needs a maverick political party and an equally charismatic leader who can bravely shun populist measures and think for the long-term well-being of India. Will these elections produce such a leader? The answer lies in the campaigning and what is being promised.

(The writer is an environmental journalist)