Face to Face with Mr. Jayakumar C. of Thanal

Jayakumar C.
Thanal, Thiruvananthapuram.
8-Octo-2009

Mr. Jayakumar C, trustee of Thanal, is also a member of the Steering Committee of Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), International POPs Elimination network, Co-chair of Pesticide Task Force of PANAP and a leader of the "Waste Not Asia" coalition. He started his session by saying that he has no PowerPoint presentation but has some ‘points’ which he would like to express with some ‘power’!

Giving the example of Gwalior Rayons (pulp) that was started in Kerala in 1957, he said that many a time the perceived profits/benefits of an enterprise is miniscule when compared to the loss/harm it brings. In a period of 30 years, Government had provided bamboo to Gwalior Rayons at a subsidized rate, bearing a loss of Rs.28,000 Crores. Even after giving so much of subsidy the company was running at a loss. In summary, we lost as well as our forest reserve.

Same is the story of the pesticides. During World War II, chlorine was used as a chemical weapon but after the war, the sector faced a threat of closure. But then they came up with the idea of using it as a pesticide. Research shows pesticides have no effect on the productivity in agriculture, still it is widely used and extensive subsidies are given to encourage their use. Mr. Jayakumar also talked about the use of Endosulfan in agriculture and it resulting in endocrine diseases, including damage to the nervous system. Endosulfan, if transferred to the unborn baby during pregnancy could adversely affect the physical and mental growth in the baby.

Speaking about waste management system and its flaws, he said that the present waste management system can make only 15% of waste useful in terms of compost. The remaining 85% still remains as waste. The best solution to this problem would be to reduce the amount of waste created and manage it as manage much as possible at the source.

Mankind benefits form the ecosystem around them. Their mere presence creates value for human beings. Quantifying the services/benefits of ecosystem is known as the ecosystem services. As responsible human beings it’s important to maintain the ecosystem service levels. Mr. Jayakumar concluded the session on the note that we should ask questions and never take anything at face value.