By IANS,
New Delhi: Jairam Ramesh brought the environment ministry to the fore and took decisive steps which were hailed or criticised, but were always noticed. The advent of his successor Jayanthi Natarajan is now being viewed with much hope and some doubts.
A crusader for the environment, Jairam Ramesh was an IIT graduate, while Natarajan, a lawyer by profession, is known as the spoksperson of Congress.
While Ramesh’s forthright steps created ripples, and also some controversies, Natarajan is known for her consultative way of working, and going by the party’s stand. With a clean image and being well versed with the nitty-gritty and dynamics of politics, she is being seen as one who would carry on the legacy of Ramesh well.
Environmentalists feel Natarajan may fit in well in Ramesh’s shoes, even as opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called it a victory of the corporates.
In over two years as environment minister, the suave 57-year-old technocrat-turned-politician Ramesh transformed a low-key ministry into headline-hunter, saying no to big industrialists and multi-million dollar projects on account of their perceived impact on the environment.
Be it mega projects like Vedanta and Posco, the Navi Mumbai airport, GM foods or tortuous climate change negotiations, Ramesh, who also served as India’s chief climate change negotiator, habitually hogged headlines.
Grand-daughter of veteran Congressman and former Tamil Nadu chief minister M. Bakhtavatsalam, Natarajan was a practising lawyer in Chennai before she joined politics in the 1980s. Natarajan, 57, earlier had a brief stint as in the I.K. Gujral-headed United Front government as minister of state for civil aviation. She was then a member of the G.K. Moopanar-headed Tamil Maanila Congress.
Known to be an articulate speaker, environmentalists feel Natarajan may mould well in the environment portfolio.
“Jairam Ramesh was a good minister and the government has done the right thing by upgrading him to a tactical portfolio,” said Sunita Narain, director of the Center for Science and Environment.
“By bringing in Jayanthi Natrajan, who does not have a pro-corporate image, the government has shown that environment is an important consideration for it,” she said.
“I think it’s an interesting choice as she (Natarajan) is a lawyer and has a very nice reputation. I think she would give a fair representation to the country’s environment needs like her predecessor,” says Belinda Wright, director, Wildlife Protection Society of India.
The BJP, however, sees a victory of the corporates in Ramesh’s elevation, even asking the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to clarify.
“The removal of Jairam marks the victory of vested corporate lobbies. This action of prime minister would deserve an honest clarification,” BJP leader Rajiv Pratap Rudy said.
Environmentalists say that even though Ramesh will be missed, hopes are high for Natarajan.
“Jairam did an outstanding job and he surely will be missed but I am sure Jayanthi will do a great job too,” said Narain.
“Ministers come and go and no minister stays at a particular ministry forever. So, this change was expected,” added Wright.