India, an 18,000-kilometre human chain to protest against climate change
Environment — di Elisabetta Scuri
50 million people joined hands in India to form an endless human chain. The message? We must unite to save the planet.
India, an 18,000-kilometre human chain to protest against climate change
50 million people joined hands in India to form an endless human chain. The message? We must unite to save the planet.
Around fifty million people of all ages formed an 18,000-kilometre human chain with the aim of expressing their concern about the state of the Earth's health. It happened on 19 January in India, specifically in the north-eastern state of Bihar.
The protest, organised by the local administration, was a resounding success: from the youngest to the eldest, everyone who took to the streets either held their neighbour's hand or held up a placard bearing passionate slogans. The images coming from the city of Chapra, in particular, are striking.
An estimated 5⃣0⃣ million people in India's🇮🇳 Bihar State made a massive human chain stretching over 18,000 km yesterday.
Why?
To raise awareness that we are in a #ClimateCrisis and to show resolve to protect our planet.
Why?
To raise awareness that we are in a #ClimateCrisis and to show resolve to protect our planet.
The reasons behind the protest
The demonstrators' aims were twofold. On one hand, they denounced the environmental problems afflicting the entire planet, and India in particular. In the top ten of the world's most polluted urban centres, the first seven are found there. The vast South Asian nation generates around 25,940 tonnes of plastic waste per day, according to a report published in 2017 by the Central Pollution Control Board (Central pollution control board), which extrapolated data from sixty major Indian cities. Despite this, the government has not kept its promise to ban single-use plastic. As if that were not enough, climate change is taking a dramatic toll: in May, Cyclone Fani, the most powerful in 43 years, claimed dozens of lives. Shortly afterwards, residents were faced with the worst heatwave in the country's history.
Read also: India fails to keep its promise to ban single-use plastic for Gandhi's birthday
On the other hand, public discontent has also stemmed from unresolved social issues. Although an aberrant practice such as instant divorce, which allowed husbands to divorce their wives simply by repeating a word three times, has been abolished; and although sexual relations with child brides have been made a criminal offence of rape; marriages with minors remain commonplace. An event like that of 19 January, however, raises hope that something is changing. From the ground up. Much like when, in the state of Kerala, five million women formed a human wall demanding the right to enter a temple. A positive wall. One that transforms into a chain and, rather than dividing, unites more than ever.