A two-day National Workshop on “Climate Change-New Age Revolution” organised here was addressed by Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra in its valedictory session on Wednesday. It was jointly held by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) New Delhi, and India office of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS), a Germany-based foundation.
Mahapatra said, “The life on earth is now under the threat of a catastrophe because of the fast-increasing carbon and other green house emissions. We have to act urgently with aggressive targets for keeping the global warming below 1.5 C, failing which the life on earth will face the catastrophe soon.”
Mahapatra added that the effect of climate change is already visible in a bigger degree. The frequency of summer and winter cyclones, increasing intensity of cyclones, erratic ways of nature, rapidly melting glaciers, etc., are the distinct indications. Odisha started working to save climate change since last ten years.
He assured that the State would provide all possible support for implementation of the action plan that would be prepared with expertise inputs from this workshop.
The experts spoke on how India could help raise capital for financing clean energy initiatives, develop measures for boosting adaptation and mitigation pathways, reduce coastal vulnerability and integrate the eco-sustainability in all policy decisions.
Civil society activists from Delhi, Bhopal, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, Meghalaya and Ceylon along with senior professors from Indian Institute of Technology and Jawaharla Nehru University participated in the deliberations.