Experts call for policies to address green issues

Hyderabad: Environmentalist and Norwegian diplomat Erik Solheim was very hopeful that India, while on its economic transformational path, would pursue, support and protect the environment in the next ten years.

Addressing a national symposium on ‘Green Manifestos: A direction for political parties in India in the context of general elections’ here on Saturday, he underlined three core areas-energy, transport and green cover-where India could bring about a paradigm shift in terms of economy and ecology.

“These are the three core areas where India can bring about a significant transformation for conservation of nature and protection of the environment. If we look at the solar city of Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh, we can see the potential in shifting energy resources and paving the way for green energy. In terms of transport, metro systems have revolutionised safe and green transportation”, he said.

Pointing out that an increase in green cover could reduce human-animal conflicts, Erik said that Telangana was leading the way by increasing its green cover by seven per cent. Urban parks play a crucial role in restoring natural resources, he said while advocating a people’s movement to save nature and the planet.

Economist Mohan Guruswamy highlighted the challenges that the country was likely to face in the near future, with the water crisis looming as the most critical one in the next 30 years.

Guruswamy said, “Water crisis is going to be a serious concern in the subcontinent as we face challenges of drying aquifers, water resources being polluted with plastic as the major pollutant and global warming. The country’s food production comes with considerable damage to the environment. As of today, 50% of the population still depends on agriculture”.

Environmentalist Prof. K. Purushottam Reddy and Dr. Narasimha Reddy Donthi stressed on the need to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs) and environment-friendly policies to address the issues of pollution.

R. Dileep Reddy, former commissioner RTI-A, activists, students and other experts were also in attendance.