The dystopian cities are here

Few months back I rewatched Stanley Kubrick’s The Space Odyssey and I was amazed that he could predict the IBM machine n talking computer etc back then. The same with Neuromancer - he actually talked about metaverse - living there etc. That was just an ode to science fiction

But yesterday n today Bangalore is dark, cold with high levels of AQI, I didn’t dare go out. We don’t talk about COVID anymore because it has become regular to have slight cold, cough, body pain - which lasts for 2 weeks or more. 60% of my colleagues are suffering so am I. 

Delhi is worst - people are wearing masks when they go out. Apparently they have air purifier everywhere - from car, balcony (one friend has 5 in his house), office clubs and yes roads too. They tried cloud seeding with no effect. Another friend was saying he and his wife went to Bhopal, another is in Himachal, the richer would have to gone to Swiss. But we don’t talk about the auto driver, bus driver, conductor and the slums which houses 60% maybe more of Delhi and runs Delhi.

I was in a Chikkaballapur - 60 km from Bangalore. Just looking at that space I felt - can i live here, if nothing I will breath some fresh air and maybe grow something in the side. Many of us want to do especially on the other side of 40 but no one is listening. While things are better managed it’s no different - polluted lakes, droughts, sanitation issues. 

There is nothing much we want to do - we just continue to live. The same life which from an environment n health perspective is being worse but thank to all convenience and discounts we have a perception that we are leading a happy life. Everything comes packaged at your doorstep right in time to put the masala on your pan - Just 10 mnts.

Some of us who are wiser won’t do that and if we do at least be wise to order an organic product. But for other it’s the palak on time - doesn’t matter where it was grown, how, what water, what soil. The curry is on time and we are all happy that we had a nutritious meal. Did we ?

It's been 3 and half years trying to do something. But, working in climate sector is difficult because whatever you do, it still makes you feel inadequate. We know it won’t solve a problem but we tell ourselves - we have taken the 1st step many might follow. Or, let me do my bit, my home, my apartment / neighbourhood. Let me clear one blackspot at a time or plant a tree - if not a forest.

It’s a daily set of check list I have - wash the plastic - store it, convince everyone around not to orde and if they do, avoid getting hot soup (a constant demand in this weather), compost my wet waste, was vegetables and fruits. It’s a battle inside & outside the house.

As we often say “There is no Planet B”. And there is one home 🙂 and one life.