HUMAN RESPONSE TO MOUNTAIN ENVIRONMENT: A CASE STUDY IN DARJEELING HIMALAYA

Man is a user of the environment for his developmental activities & always disrupts this natural system and creates a background for environmental degradation. The entire aspect of planning the environment has a social dimension just because man is at the core of the problem. Human interference – due to excessive population growth – is fast extending in Darjeeling Himalaya, leading to degradation of mountain environment.
This paper attempt to identify the nature of population growth in this mountain region & its impact on environment & their future prospect. It reveals from the study that the mountain environment of Darjeeling Himalaya is visibly deteriorating at a rapid pace. The trend is now increasingly that of its beautiful blend of mountain vistas, sylvan landscapes and a unique living heritage of beautiful buildings, facades & settings giving way to a sprawling slum of ugly and faceless box like structures, blighted neighborhoods, noisy surroundings, polluted air & water, vehicular congestion, compounded by decay, impoverishment, & day to day hardship.
Thus the demographic planning for the region must include both population limitation and migration control, through a combination of socio-economic incentives and legal controls.