ongoing nature art project - changing land and urban space

changing land and urban space

 

artist  ----  Rajib bhattacharjee

 

Threat to the wetlands that are so crucial to Kolkata's survival, and yet so fragile…….

The wetlands enjoy the protection of court orders, legislations and international conventions, but there is no real shield on the ground. In the past 10 years, nearly 30 % of Kolkata wetlandand natural eco-system has been converted into concrete. Another quarter of the wetlands are under threat. Land sharks use an old but ruthlessly effective method of walling up a part of the wetland and dumping tonnes of fly ash, concrete and garbage in the dead of night. Within weeks what was once a thriving bheri (fish pond) turns into dry land and the site for the next ‘‘urbanism ’’.

 Kolkata has been facing the pressures of a growing city, and increased disposable income in metropolitan India.

The wetlands are crucial to Kolkata's future because they process around 980-million litres of sewage generated by the city's 7 million residents. 

According to SunithaNarain of Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), the first blessing Kolkata has is its own river Ganga and the second is the city’s eastward slope takes its sewer system to Wetlands which treats it in natural process and the third blessing Kulti-Gong in the east of wetlands that carries the sewer to sea.

Creative commune is engaged in nature art practice since its inception ……. Hence nature is our prime concern  ……. This is the second nature art project titled – changing land and urban space ……. The location of the wetland under threat is ---- near nawajpur , half kilometer north  from the sodepur road and kalyani expressway intersection and on kalyani expressway , north 24-parganas , west Bengal , India.                                       

Warning that the city is going to face ‘deliberate hydrocide’ in future, she said that the ever expanding city is banking on over-withdrawal of ground-water which is established by the presence of excessive percentage of arsenic and nitrate in city’s water.

Implementation of sustainable policies can maintain the ecologicalequilibrium of these valuable water bodies, which, in turn, can enhancesocial, environmental and economic security of Kolkata in future.

 

 

 

remains of the urban encounter 

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