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ForTheCauseofGeology

The document discusses the environmental impact of pollution, particularly from plastics, and suggests solutions such as using biodegradable materials and constructing outlets for excess water. It also critiques the current state of geology education, highlighting the need for modernization and practical skills in the curriculum. The authors emphasize the importance of geology in disaster management and the need for effective geological advice in development processes.

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Asesor Barry
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4 views1 page

ForTheCauseofGeology

The document discusses the environmental impact of pollution, particularly from plastics, and suggests solutions such as using biodegradable materials and constructing outlets for excess water. It also critiques the current state of geology education, highlighting the need for modernization and practical skills in the curriculum. The authors emphasize the importance of geology in disaster management and the need for effective geological advice in development processes.

Uploaded by

Asesor Barry
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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CORRESPONDENCE

should be cleared off to restore the origi- groves). These plants saved the life of same. So let us practise a pollution-free
nal state/course of the rivers. The uncon- people during tsunami. To prevent dam- life by adopting natural ways and
trollable usage of polythene and plastic age to dams, outlets should be con- means to solve this problem in a planned
products which prevent percolation of structed to discharge the excess water. manner.
water into the soil is responsible for deple- This excess water could be used for cul-
tion of water table. This non-biodegrad- tivating fallow land and also for develop- 1. Sharma, P. D., Ecology and Environment,
Rastogi Publications, New Delhi, 1975.
able material deposited in river bed made ing aquaculture. Global warming and
perennial rivers dry for most of the year. climate change is the cumulative effect
Use of biodegradable plastics should be of environmental pollution due to in- SILAR MOHAMMED1,*
encouraged. crease in CO2. Mixed cropping in plains MOHAMMED GHOUSE2
Excessive sand extraction from the could absorb more CO2 as crop diversity
1
rivers made them clayey and silty. To may convert CO2 more efficiently to Department of Botany and
2
control the flow of water, sand-binding organic form during photosynthesis. Department of Zoology,
plants should be raised. These plants Lastly, the causal factors are almost Osmania College,
avoid soil erosion (Vetiveria grass, the same wherever there is flooding hit. Kurnool 518 001, India
Rhizophora and Avicennia – all man- At the same time, solutions are also the *e-mail: [email protected]

For the cause of geology


As goes the Darwinian dictum of survi- failed to make a perceptible positive ner. It is the system and academia that
val of the fittest, subjects that mutate in impact. are to be blamed really.
time and keep them relevant in the com- Geographic information system (GIS) All this has led to decreasing impor-
petitive world flourish at the cost of and remote sensing have been the latest tance of such an important subject; the
others that are late to respond. Over the additions to the geology curriculum of subject that affects our routine lives in a
years I have seen diversification in a many institutions. These are no doubt the big way and if put to use effectively can
number of subjects together with their two most important aspects of the pre- make the difference felt. Geological
becoming increasingly important. There sent times but the importance of these is advice in landslide restoration works or
was a time when zoology–botany–che- being overemphasized at the cost of geotechnical feasibility reports have
mistry (ZBC) and physics–chemistry– other basic elements of the subject. already been reduced to a mere formality
mathematics (PCM) used to be the two These have thus resulted in deterioration and engineers dominate the show at the
most popular combinations in most sci- of the essence of the subject to the extent cost of geologists. Lack of effective geo-
ence faculties across the nation. Since that fieldwork has almost vanished. This logical advice at the right time is
then, ZBC has diversified immensely and is evident from the deteriorating quality adversely affecting the whole develop-
has become almost interdisciplinary at of the geological maps themselves. The mental process and things are required to
the postgraduate level. Passouts from passouts of present times know how to be set right; sooner the better.
these courses have good demand in the determine their location using a global And the stalwarts of the subject would
market and so these courses are the most positioning system (GPS) and plot the be the best persons to herald this process.
popular amongst the students of science same in maps created in the GIS environ- It is high time that the ones proudly car-
faculty. Compared to the subjects that ment but are unable to do the same using rying the mantle of geology as a subject
have diversified according to the emerg- topomaps and compass/clinometer. To made serious attempts to see that this
ing and practical demands the others that them, compass/clinometer and geological interesting subject does not become
failed to do so are not that much in hammer are things of the bygone days. extinct.
demand. These subjects are however no It is hard to imagine a geologist who is
less important. not competent enough to measure dip
PIYOOSH RAUTELA
Geology is one such subject that has and strike of a simple bedding plane, but
failed to keep pace with the changing there are many around who cannot. The
scenario in most of the Indian colleges passouts are not really to be blamed. Disaster Mitigation and Management
and universities. It is still being taught They learn what they are taught. If they Centre,
the same way it used to be in the 1960s. cannot appreciate the importance of Uttarakhand Secretariat,
This does not imply that the courses have compass/clinometer or topomap, perhaps Rajpur Road,
not been revised. There have been some the importance of the same has not been Dehradun 248 001, India
additions and deletions but these have stressed upon them in a meaningful man- e-mail: [email protected]

468 CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 98, NO. 4, 25 FEBRUARY 2010

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