BHUBANESWAR, NOV 11: Robbed of a precious chunk of its forest cover and crop fields by twin cyclones, Orissa's ecological balance has turned topsy-turvy, threatening its people of a fierce and rainless summer ahead.The mid-November sun has become unbearably hot with clueless residents of this capital city wondering what lies in store when May comes, says eminent environmentalist Banka Behari das.The heat wave had taken about 2,200 lives in the summer of 1997. The scene could be worse this time, he warns.The century's worst cyclone will have devastating longterm effects on the ecology and agricultural patterns of the state. ``Saline water inundation of the coastal belt has rendered that patch of land incapable of producing any crop and this would certainly mar our agricultural prospects,'' says director of environment L M Pattnaik.The over eight metre tidal surge that flooded the Paradipchandbali and Astaranga stretch along the coast has completely wiped off prospects of agriculture in the near future, he adds.Compared to Cuttack, which has an alluvial soil base allowing lesser heat radiation, Bhubaneswar is rocky meaning the only way to absorb its hot gas emissions were trees.But the city is barren today meaning all the carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide emissions will go unabsorbed making it extremely hot, Das explains. The mercury had soared above 45 degrees celcius in the coastal belt of Orissa last summer. The capital Bhubaneswar alo experienced similar sweltering heat with a rapidly growing concrete jungle in its heartland.``We have been concerned about this surge ever since a large number of multi-storied apartments began mushrooming in the capital, says State Pollution Control Board chairman Prof M C Das adding increased vehicular traffic on its roads was making matters worse.International experts say the destruction caused by the cyclones could have been lessened had the mangrove forests lining the coast not been destroyed for commercial reasons.The Orissa coastline, which was once covered by mangrove, could have further dissipated the incoming wave energy, Tom Spencer of the Cambridge Coastal Research Unit at Cambridge University says in the latest issue of The New Scientist.Das corroborates his views saying the mangrove forest reserves, which acted as barriers for incoming tidal surges, had been fast depleting along with siltation in the deltaic region. Rare field gene banks of a number of valuable plant resources have been lost to the cyclone. Most of the collection of exotic rare trees, palms, bamboo, orchids, cacti and other succulents reserved in the regional Plant Resource Centre have been washed away in the torrential rains.An invaluable collection of medicinal and aromatic plants have also been completely detroyed, laments Dr Premananda Dash, head of the centre billed to be the best in Asia.
