Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Opening a roundtable on “Environmental Conservation and Economic Development: Searching for Balance”, Dr Arash Fazli, Chair for Studies in Development at Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya (DAVV), said here on Monday that growth or mere expansion could not continue indefinitely. What was needed was true development—the realisation of possibilities.
The conference brought together academics, environmentalists, social entrepreneurs and students to examine how India could reconcile its urgent developmental needs with the imperative of ecological preservation.
Dr Fazli described the environmental crisis as not merely a technical or policy challenge but a profound moral emergency, warning that “profit-making had never been the foundation of society’s organisation.”
DAVV vice chancellor, Prof Rakesh Singhai, highlighted the complexity of balancing human needs and sustainability, citing the Narmada dam’s transformative role in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
Padma Shri awardee Dr Janak Palta McGilligan shared her decades of experience in land restoration, rural women’s training and renewable energy promotion, asserting that sustainability must be rooted in service and gratitude.
Other speakers emphasised community knowledge, renewable energy innovation and individual responsibility. Dr Yogesh Jadhav argued that GDP should be seen as a by-product of grassroots conservation-led development, while Divya Kaushal and Umi Saran urged recognition of nature’s intrinsic value beyond human utility.
The central message was that India faced a dual challenge of poverty and unemployment alongside grave ecological decline. The Participants agreed that solutions demanded a new paradigm—one embedding ethics, values and sustainability into the very fabric of economic planning.
