08 Sep 2014|Noida | F1 Seminar Hall
Environmentalists Accentuates for a Comprehensive Policy for Protection of Himalayas on Himalayan Day at Amity University
A seminar on “Himalaya and Community” was conducted to celebrate The HimalayanDay at Amity Campus, sector 125, Noida. Himalayan Day is celebrated to spread the message thatsolutions for sustainable development and ecological stability for theHimalayas must be as unique as the Himalayan ecosystem itself.
Prof. (Dr.) Kazi Jalal,Professor, Harvard University and Mr. J C Kala, Former Director General ofForest-cum-Secretary, Government of India were thespeakers for the occasion. The event was attended by the students, faculty andstaff of Amity University.
The seminar served as a platform for discussion on the majorchallenges facing the Himalayas such as increasing population, rampant urbanization,unchecked deforestation, melting of glaciers and various other ecologicaldisruptions that are rapidly triggering disasters of the kind that occurred inKedarnath and recent disaster in Jammu & Kashmir.
Speaking about the Importance of Himalayas in SustainableDevelopment of India, Prof. (Dr.) KaziJalal said that The Himalayas sustain the climatic change and habitats ofIndia and are currently undergoing rapid change, in terms of both ecology aswell as the human settlements they support. He further added that at present,the region is facing trouble as no proper protection process is followed. He stressedthat the Himalayan people need to be protected through proper policy andplanning.
Addressing the gathering, Mr.J C Kala said that India is blessed with vast topography of planes and scenicMountains and therefore, the maintenance of the serene beauty of nature isresponsibility of the people. He also mentioned that if Himalayas had not beenhere then India would not have been blessed with such diverse climate andprobably would been a dessert. He emphasized that the disasters that took placein the region are because the issues related to Himalayas are overlooked, andthat any such tragedy in the Himalayas is not just local, but has nation widerepurcussions.
During the seminar, Prof.BKP Sinha, Advisor, Amity School of Natural Resources and SustainableDevelopment and Mr. Prashant R Chauhan, Asst Professor, AISS furthereducated the participants about the Changing Attitude on Migration of LocalPopulation of Himalaya and Role of Himalayas in the Indian Economy and Culture.
The students had an interactive session with the speakers duringwhich they mooted various suggestions for the preservation and sustainabledevelopment of Himalayas.