Nation needs a green remedy at the earliest

Greens are good for us all, says all kinds of research. Not the saag-style edible greens, but trees, forests, wilderness. Research talks of mental health and brain productivity increasing after spending time in the wilderness. All this is fine, but for most of us in Indian towns or cities, where shall we go?

My own closest park is a tiny mud-patch and a bench. In the capital of one of the low-altitude North Eastern states, my friend’s closest park was only marginally better than my ghastly park at home. In a small central Indian town, we found no green patch at all. Even in smaller towns in India, a patch of green is becoming rarer. And in slums, where most urban dwellers reside, a patch of wilderness is only an illusion.

Given the acknowledged stress of modern life, every urban dweller should have access to one safe, rich patch of green, however small. We need a dash of botanicals gone wild, not grass. And not only parks, but colleges and campuses must follow the same logic.

This is not hippie-sentimentality. The data on mental health tells us there’s a crisis — 50 million Indians suffer some mental illness and 9 of 10 with less severe issues remain untreated. Being close to nature is by far not the key remedy, but it does clearly offer some benefits. The problem is, most Indians not only lack access to mental health professionals, they also lack access to beautiful greens which could ameliorate their condition.

The writer is director of Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group