Concerned over the threat to natural resources in the Himalayas, environmentalist here Sunday said there was an urgent
need to preserve its ecology and the country's states benefitting by
the mountain's resources like water should step up effort to protect
them.
Observing the 'Himalaya Day' for the third year
consecutively, the environment activists urged the central government to
urge the states which reap benefits from its natural resources like
water to join hands to conserve it.
"Responsibility to conserve
the richness and resourcefulness of the Himalayas needs to be shouldered
by every citizen of the country," said eminent environmentalist Anil
Joshi.
"The call by us (activists) is to develop strong
collateral relations between mountain and non-mountain regions to negate
the threats posed to natural resources, water and oxygen, as Himalayas
is not a concern for the Himalayan communities alone; it rather is a
question of the security of livelihood which involves all the parts of
the country that reap multiple benefits from it," he said.
A group of environmentalist gathered in national capital to celebrate Sep 9 as Himalaya Day.
The
day was chosen by activists in 2010 to bring awareness to save the
lofty ranges of Himalayas which are under ecological threat due to
increased human interference.
"Unfortunately, Himalayas are seen
as a commodity. Everybody just enjoys the resources but no one is ready
to address the crisis of this region," he said, adding that 65 percent
of the water from the Himalayas is being used by other states while
those in the Himalayan region use only 3.8 percent of it.
He also
said Himalayas are dying as the snowfall patterns are drastically
altered and glaciers are melting in the region. Landslides, cloudburst
are the results of mistreating the nature.
"If we don't get our
acts together... we will have to bear the brunt, which would be
devastating. Changing climate pattern means more frequent droughts and
floods not only in the region but also those living in downstream," he
added.
Various environment activists participating in the
Himalayan Day celebration demanded a separate board to be formed to
tackle environment issues in the Himalayan region.
"To safeguard
Himalayas a separate board comprising representatives from various
states should be formed so that they could focus on the issues
pertaining to it," an activist participating in the event added.
Need joint efforts to save Himalayas: Eco-activists
