Guwahati, July 14 -- Renowned environmentalist Dattatreya T. Devare has said that the rampant destruction of the environment in the name of infrastructure is not "development" but "devilopment."

Activist Devare, a trustee of the Bangalore Environment Trust (BET) and a veteran civic activist, spoke on Sunday (July 13) at the Pragjyoti ITA Cultural Centre in Guwahati.

Hosted by the Concerned Citizens of Guwahati, his talk, "Tree Felling for Infrastructure: Balancing Development and Ecology," drew a large, engaged audience keen to understand the complexities of urban development and its ecological fallout.

Drawing on his extensive experience in Bengaluru, Devare shared numerous compelling examples. He stressed the urgent need for a robust...