Uttarakhand floods emphasise the need to balance ecology with economy

As Uttarakhand battles the fury of the floods which have left thousands feared dead and over 75000 still missing or stranded, it is time to ask some questions: Could the Uttarakhand tragedy have been avoided, or at least minimised? 

There is no simple answer.

Environmentalists describe the death and damage as a man-made disaster while geologists say the extent of destruction could have been far lesser if stricter regulations had been put in place and the authorities equipped to deal with the situation. Politicians as usual have no comments.

Indiscriminate development in the hill towns, with guest houses, hotels and all manners of illegal encroachment taking place along the rivers, it was a disaster waiting to happen. Since 2002 there has been a ban on building within 100 meters of the river bed.

But also in focus is the Uttarakhand government's resistance to declaring an environmentally fragile area as 'Eco Sensitive' and whether the state government was prioritising commercial concerns over the environment.  

But with the state currently reeling from a disaster, the full impact of which is still unknown, Uttarakhand will have to face difficult questions over its choices and may have to rethink its priorities.

What are your views of the current disaster? What strategy should the states adopt to balance the needs of a growing economy ecological concerns?