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Resource centre on India's rural distress
 
 

A mixed blessing

A global survey’s rating of Indian consumers as the greenest in the world, though significant in itself, should be viewed in perspective. In the annual survey carried out by the National Geographic Society and the international polling firm GlobeScan, India topped the ranking for the eco-friendly consumption pattern of its population for the second year in a row. Brazil has been adjudged second, China third and the US last in the survey that appraised 17 nations. The criteria chosen for measuring the environmental impact of consumption pattern included modes of transportation, household energy and resource use, food consumption and the use of consumer goods, besides people’s attitude towards environmental issues. It is not surprising that barring housing, where India scored behind Brazil, it topped in all other areas. Much of the credit for this high green rating goes to the poverty and frugality of Indian consumers. A large number of even middle class Indians are still very frugal in their consumption behaviour and are less non-renewable energy-dependent than developed country consumers. The transport sector is the worst defaulter in the green index and India’s relatively low car density, with more small cars and two-wheelers in the automobile market, contributes to India’s higher ranking. The use of public transport for inter-city and long distances is quite common. Most Indians also prefer home-cooked, locally grown food rather than processed food transported over long distances. Besides, a large number of Indians are either vegetarian or only casual consumers of high-protein non-vegetarian food. Even urban households still use manual labour for household chores instead of washing machines, vacuum cleaners and dish washers. This apart, India’s climate makes it less dependent on central heating, even though air-conditioning is growing rapidly. All this helps.

That said, make no mistake that this austere and environment-friendly life-style is giving way to western-type environment-unfriendly lifestyle, especially among the middle classes and new-rich. While the poor remain environment-friendly because they cannot afford wasteful consumption, they too are contributing to the proliferation of plastic and the excessive consumption of fossil fuels, thanks to energy subsidies. So, things will change as the economy develops and incomes rise, unless steps are taken to discourage environment-unfriendly consumption. With a steady rise in income levels, especially of the country’s vast middle and upper middle classes, more and more are adopting energy-intensive lifestyle. The penchant for larger cars and upper-end motorbikes is gradually growing. The market for consumer durables using plastics and non-disposable material is also expanding. As far as awareness of environmental issues is concerned, there is no doubt that it is growing, but it does not appear to be the most dominant factor in determining people’s lifestyle as yet. The findings of the global survey bear this out. Nearly 40 per cent of Indians are reported to have endorsed the view that environmental concerns are over-emphasised. There is, thus, need for further improving environmental awareness so that it could influence the consumption pattern.