JK CM urges civil society to be responsive for safeguarding State’s biodiversity

Srinagar, June 03 (Scoop News) – “Better late than never, we should wake up and work jointly to protect environment and biological diversity of Jammu and Kashmir”, Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah said on Thursday. He beseeched upon the civil society to be responsive to the issue of safeguarding biodiversity and eco-system of the State.

            Addressing the inaugural session of the 3-day International Conference on “Wildlife and Biodiversity conservation vis-à-vis climate change” at SKICC here, the Chief Minister highlighted the need for protection and conservation of State’s rich biodiversity.

             Omar said that the three regions of Jammu and Kashmir present enormously rich biodiversity inhabiting rare and unique plant and animal species. “Our actions have eroded eco-system putting tremendous pressure on forests, wetlands, water bodies, lakes and rivers. Time is ripe enough for us to understand the dangerous affects of denudation of forests, pollution of water bodies and pressure on fauna and flora”, he said and asked the participants in the conference to come up with concrete suggestions to address this issue. He said local problems on this count should be kept in focus while formulating recommendations.

            “It is heartening that younger generation is quite aware of the importance of safeguarding State’s biodiversity and environment. Our teenagers and children of even lesser ages question us about our carelessness vis-à-vis conservation and protection of State’s natural wealth”, he said adding this should act as driving force for us to realize our responsibilities in this direction.

            He said that the State’s biological diversity embeds vast avenues of economic welfare. “We should learn to co-exist with our nature and environment and avail ourselves of the benefits of biodiversity without harming it”, he maintained.

Omar asked the conference to discuss the pressures caused by population growth on biodiversity and eco-system. He said human causes for climate change needed to be deliberated upon in the conference. “We are witnessing visible change in the climate pattern in the State. The winters are without snow, springs are hotter while summers are unpredictable”, he said and asked the organizers to hold more such conferences in future to keep the issues live till a permanent strategy is worked out to address the issue effectively.

            The conference was also addressed by the Minister for Forests, Mian Altaf Ahmad. He spelt out the policy planning of the government regarding protection and conservation of forests and wildlife.

            The Vice-Chancellor, SKUAST which is organizing the conference in collaboration with Association of Indian Zoo and Wildlife Veterinarian (AIZWV), in his address presented a scenario of state’s biodiversity and underscored the need for its protection.

            The Director, Research, SKUAST, Dr. Trag and President AIZWV, Dr. Arora also addressed the conference.

            The conference is attended by the national and international experts besides faculty Members of Sher-i-Kashmir University of Agricultural Science and Technology. There will be seven technical sessions during the 3-day conference.

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