World Bank Warns of Environment Cost of India Growth

India’s robust economic growth will put unprecedented pressures on its land, water, air, soil and forestry resources, a World Bank report said on Tuesday.

India’s economy has grown more than 8 percent annually in the past two years, with manufacturing and services leading growth.

The country, which has Asia’s fourth largest economy, is tipped to be a major global player in the next two decades.
“Rapid economic growth and the resulting changes in consumption patterns are drastically changing the nature and scale of impact on the country’s environment and natural resources,” the report said.

Industries like electronics and information technology — one of India’s flagship growth sectors — textiles, pharmaceuticals, and basic chemicals, belong to the “red category” of major polluting processes, the report said.

These sectors are significantly polluting water and air and causing more hazardous waste.

Planet Ark