With the passing away of Mr. Anil Dave a seasoned politician and river Conservation enthusiast a great loss has occurred. The loss is not of a political party alone, it is a serious setback for the conservation in India.     

Albeit the scope of river conservation (NCRD) under the ministry of Environment and Forests is greater with inclusion of lakes and other water bodies. It nevertheless points out to the value system we uphold in this country. 

Most rivers in India have always had a holy status with the usual connotation of "mother." The connotation does not point out towards the belief as being illogical it should be seen in wider perspective. This is a shrewd way of according importance to an element of ecological importance. The credit goes to the Vedic system which originated about five thousand years back during the peak of Indus Valley Civilization in India.

As Indians we should believe in the system as Vedas have had an indelible impact on our lives since time immemorial. Likewise the connotation specifying things as motherly or holy are used in many instances especially elements which are of ecological importance like, trees, animals, reptiles, birds and others. 

Hence the status Mother or Holy is applicable to Ganges or Narmada since they played a significant role in upbringing ancient civilizations in the country...they still do. Such connotations just act as a subtle means of adding value. The Vedic civilization has been instrumental in creating such a value system during it's prevalence all over India. The value system is logical address to creation of cultural values rather than being religious in nature.          

Whatever may be the causes of degradation of environment in India. An impressive shred of environmental degradation is history of imperialism, the impact has also been brought about by our greed, ill planned land use and rabid industrialization. 

The negative impact has been mitigated by this value system to a good extent. By this I mean there is still hope for saving the tiger and other species, cleaning the polluted rivers, regenerating niche ecosystems, and bringing about responsible change how we govern the country and our society.  

The ethos of Vedic System is ingrained in our psyche consciously or otherwise, It is perpetually instrumental in auguring us towards a more conservation oriented approach vis a vis nature. The results of impact are obvious whence we take into consideration the efforts being made towards conservation of animals, birds, rivers, habitats and environment as whole in the country.      

The ancient Vedic civilizations in India were fully cognizant of impact of environmental degradation on our lives. It was well known since ages that human activities could cause disruptions in weather patterns, temperature, rainfall and agriculture. The ancient scriptures contain references to aspects of ecological importance and how to prevent damage and augur forth a positive impact.

With all the knowledge stored in ancient treatise we should be at the forefront of conservation and hence climate change in the World.