Editorial
Care for the Creation
Opinion | Editorial | John S. Shilshi | 11-Sep-2026
Before Pope Leo announced a five-week ‘Season of Care,' the world witnessed two instances of human suffering caused by the fury of nature. In the middle of August, Mon district headquarters in Nagaland were flooded, resulting in loss of lives and property. While the administration struggled to rehabilitate the affected, four districts of Assam were severely impacted by an unprecedented flood. Besides loss of human lives, the flood swept away hundreds of homes and livestock and also ravaged acres of cultivated land, turning them into nothing less than cemented floors with no trace of greenery on them. Not long after that, Nepal experiences one of the worst devastating floods on August 26, reported to have been caused by a melting glacier in Tibet. Here too lives, properties, livestock and homes were swept away in Rasuwa and Nuwakot districts. The country is still unable to fully account for deaths and missing persons even today.
In the backdrops of these disasters, Pope Leo’s call to the Church to observe the Season of Creation came timely to remind mankind how being unkind to the gifts of God could have disastrous consequences, particularly when the abuse of nature is greed-driven. While announcing the season, the Pope said, "It is not yet too late to listen to the melodious voice of creation," and called upon mankind to step away from the frenzy of daily life and dedicate their time and attention towards repairing relationship with nature. Though his call was a mildly conveyed expression, it certainly was a forceful message against the destructive attitudes of human beings. It was a strong warning to those in the habit of disrespecting God’s common gift to the world – the Creation.
The North-east region, often known as the home of nature lovers, is fast moving away from that very enviable reputation. Even though the region is uniquely known for depleting forests through shifting cultivations for decades, experts now agree that though jhuming activities may not conform to scientific norms in its process, the ecological and environmental damage was much lesser as compared to the destruction caused by so-called development. In the shifting cultivation’s case, clearing of forest was calibrated in most states. Indigenous knowledge were at play. Therefore, the regeneration processes were faster not only in respect of forests but even for springs and rivers. On the other hand, destructions caused by commercial activities leaves little scope for recuperation, and even if it did, it is time-consuming. Worst still are the destructions caused by development activities. Mountains are brought down, rivers and water bodies wiped out, and trees and plants vanish permanently.
One study says that five Northeast states account for nearly 60% of India's total tree cover loss between 2001 and 2023, replacing rich ancient forests with degraded plantations or fragmented landscapes. Large-scale dam construction—such as early projects on the Brahmaputra and ongoing tensions over the Siang and Teesta rivers—has disrupted local ecologies and caused severe erosion and displaced indigenous communities. We saw how unregulated coal mining in Meghalaya and Mon district of Nagaland has contributed considerably to landslides and ecological imbalance in the area, while indiscriminate oil explorations resulted in unwanted leaks, and untreated industrial wastewater severely degrades local soil and water sources. The degradation of vital ecosystems like Assam's Deepor Beel Ramsar site subjected to chronic urban waste pollution is an example.
Apart from heavy rainfall, researchers and local residents point to wetland degradation, disrupted drainage, unregulated mining, and infrastructure development as factors responsible for the Brahmaputra basin being vulnerable to flooding. In the guise of development, trees have been uprooted without replenishment policy, and hills and mountains have been cut without proper environmental impact assessments. Indigenous communities who have had aged-old relationships with nature—the real custodians of land and forests—are rarely consulted before highways and railways are constructed in their areas. Policy makers and greed-driven officials don’t bother about the consequences because when disaster strikes, they and their people wouldn’t be the victims. In other words, abuse of nature and natural resources is authority-mandated in most cases.
The ‘Season of Creation’ is not a new thing, after all. Since 1989, it has been observed as ‘Creation Day’ and ‘World Day of Prayer for Creation' by different churches, until Pope Francis instituted it as World Day of Prayer for the Catholic Church in 2015. This year, the Season of Creation comes at a time when the region and the neighbourhood have seen unprecedented human tragedy. With memories of human sufferings still fresh in people’s minds, one hopes the season would evoke greater interest to take abuse of nature seriously and respect God’s creations.