Context
The Uttarakhand government recently announced it will initiate valuation of its natural resources in the form of ‘Gross Environment Product’ (GEP), said to be along the lines of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The idea of valuation of the components of environment is not new. But it got impetus following rapid degradation of ecosystems, which led to adverse impacts on more than 60 per cent of services we get from the ecosystems.
Several attempts were made to find ways to address environmental issues. The term “ecosystem services” was coined in 1981 to attract academics towards this aspect.
Later, American ecological economist Robert Costanza contributed several publications defining and elaborating aspects of ecosystem services. According to Costanza, ecosystem services are the benefits human populations derive, directly or indirectly, from ecosystem functions.
The definition is still in the process of evolution. In 1997, a group of 13 economists and ecologists led by Costanza showed that at global level the value of ES is about twice as much as the global GDP.
The concept received attention and now is part of global knowledge. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment was called for by the United Nations Secretary, General Kofi Annan, in 2000.
Ecosystem services is now well-defined field of research worldwide.
The Himalayan context
A majority of publications are from the United States, followed by China. Other countries including India contribute little to the field. On implementation front, Mexico has emerged prominent in fostering ecosystem services and payment mechanisms.
In India, SP Singh, a Himalayan ecologist, published the first conceptual paper on ecosystem services narrating Indian perspectives. He also published a monograph titled Himalayan Forest Ecosystem Services.
The Himalayas contribute substantially to the sustainability of the Gangetic Plains where 500 million people live. It may be pointed out that on the recommendation of the ecologists like Singh, the Union government incorporated the value of ecosystem services of its states in national accounting.
According to the recommendation of 12th and 13th Finance Commissions, grants were transferred to forest rich states in amounts corresponding to their forest covers. However, considering only the forest cover in transferring funds to states is inadequate.
Ecosystem services represent the benefits humans get: Forests, lakes and grasslands; timber and dyed; carbon sequestration and nutrient cycling; soil formation and productivity; and tourism.
If the payments are to reflect the true value of the services provided, then these services need to be measured and assigned unit values, which would require two separate types of analysis. Singh introduced the concept of service providing (example, the Himalayas) and receiving zones (example, the Gangetic Plains).
It should be understood that while valuing ecosystem services, the population size served is important. That is why Uttarakhand, which substantially serves Gangetic Plains, is far more important than Sikkim, which has only a small population to serve in plains.
Singh and his team suggested a system to valorise ecosystem services in the Himalayan states of India in a way that is consistent with the national mission on Himalayan ecosystems. According to them, ecosystem services of a state benefiting the rest of the country and world should be valued, and these values should be incorporated into national accounting.
The main argument is that since the market does not perform money transfer from regions that benefit from ecosystem services to regions which produce them, the central government should perform this transfer.
It may be emphasised that because of the river connection, Uttarakhand has a special place in providing soil and water to the Gangetic plains. Carbon sequestration is a global ecosystem service; biodiversity is regional, national and global.
It also needs to be understood that Himalayan rivers not only drain down water but also carry millions of tonnes of sediments. River connections are being considerably altered. The ecological regime of the hills of Uttarakhand and other Himalayan states is being destroyed with little or no benefit to regions from where they are being harnessed.
On the initiative of late RS Tolia, the then chief secretary, Singh wrote a document for the 12th Finance Commission. The Government of India partially accepted the recommendations of this document and started transferring the funds to states.
Uttarakhand state holds a distinct position historically on social awareness towards importance of ecosystems. The origin of world famous CHIPKO Movement of led Srimati Gaura Devi and famous activists like CP Bhatt and Sundarlal Bahuguna was primarily initiated with the objective to protect forest rights of local communities, and has its roots in the hills of Uttarakhand.
Later on, under the leadership of well-known environmental activist Jagat Singh Jangli, social workers marched to Delhi with the demand for payment for water and oxygen produced by the forests of Uttarakhand covering about 65 per cent of the state’s land.
It may also be pointed out that in 20010-11, the than chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank had mooted the idea of green bonus for the state. So, it is obvious that the state should be steady in its approach and focus on ecosystem services that has global acceptance and a strong knowledge base.
The Confusion
The decision of Uttarakhand government to incorporate GEP appears to be a welcome step. But going ahead with the jargon raises serious doubts on the intent of the government. It may confuse policy makers and negate the past efforts.
The purpose of introducing GEP is not transparent. Is it a process of simple valuation of state’s ecological wealth, or to assess that what part of the GDP it contributes. It is an attempt to claim budget from the centre against ecosystem services the state provides to rest of the country and / or it is a process of providing benefits to its own residents.
Instead of introducing a well-defined concept of ecosystem services, planting a new term with no clear-cut narrative invites serious doubts on the intention of the government. So, it is important that the state should be steady in approach, focusing on Ecosystem Services, which has global acceptance and a strong knowledge base.
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In a diverse country like India, where each State is socially, culturally, economically, and politically distinct, measuring Governance becomes increasingly tricky. The Public Affairs Index (PAI 2021) is a scientifically rigorous, data-based framework that measures the quality of governance at the Sub-national level and ranks the States and Union Territories (UTs) of India on a Composite Index (CI).
States are classified into two categories – Large and Small – using population as the criteria.
In PAI 2021, PAC defined three significant pillars that embody Governance – Growth, Equity, and Sustainability. Each of the three Pillars is circumscribed by five governance praxis Themes.
The themes include – Voice and Accountability, Government Effectiveness, Rule of Law, Regulatory Quality and Control of Corruption.
At the bottom of the pyramid, 43 component indicators are mapped to 14 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are relevant to the States and UTs.
This forms the foundation of the conceptual framework of PAI 2021. The choice of the 43 indicators that go into the calculation of the CI were dictated by the objective of uncovering the complexity and multidimensional character of development governance
The Equity Principle
The Equity Pillar of the PAI 2021 Index analyses the inclusiveness impact at the Sub-national level in the country; inclusiveness in terms of the welfare of a society that depends primarily on establishing that all people feel that they have a say in the governance and are not excluded from the mainstream policy framework.
This requires all individuals and communities, but particularly the most vulnerable, to have an opportunity to improve or maintain their wellbeing. This chapter of PAI 2021 reflects the performance of States and UTs during the pandemic and questions the governance infrastructure in the country, analysing the effectiveness of schemes and the general livelihood of the people in terms of Equity.
Growth and its Discontents
Growth in its multidimensional form encompasses the essence of access to and the availability and optimal utilisation of resources. By resources, PAI 2021 refer to human resources, infrastructure and the budgetary allocations. Capacity building of an economy cannot take place if all the key players of growth do not drive development. The multiplier effects of better health care, improved educational outcomes, increased capital accumulation and lower unemployment levels contribute magnificently in the growth and development of the States.
The Pursuit Of Sustainability
The Sustainability Pillar analyses the access to and usage of resources that has an impact on environment, economy and humankind. The Pillar subsumes two themes and uses seven indicators to measure the effectiveness of government efforts with regards to Sustainability.
The Curious Case Of The Delta
The Delta Analysis presents the results on the State performance on year-on-year improvement. The rankings are measured as the Delta value over the last five to 10 years of data available for 12 Key Development Indicators (KDI). In PAI 2021, 12 indicators across the three Pillars of Equity (five indicators), Growth (five indicators) and Sustainability (two indicators). These KDIs are the outcome indicators crucial to assess Human Development. The Performance in the Delta Analysis is then compared to the Overall PAI 2021 Index.
Key Findings:-
In the Scheme of Things
The Scheme Analysis adds an additional dimension to ranking of the States on their governance. It attempts to complement the Governance Model by trying to understand the developmental activities undertaken by State Governments in the form of schemes. It also tries to understand whether better performance of States in schemes reflect in better governance.
The Centrally Sponsored schemes that were analysed are National Health Mission (NHM), Umbrella Integrated Child Development Services scheme (ICDS), Mahatma Gandh National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SmSA) and MidDay Meal Scheme (MDMS).
National Health Mission (NHM)
INTEGRATED CHILD DEVELOPMENT SERVICES (ICDS)
MID- DAY MEAL SCHEME (MDMS)
SAMAGRA SHIKSHA ABHIYAN (SMSA)
MAHATMA GANDHI NATIONAL RURAL EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE SCHEME (MGNREGS)