To save Mother Earth, children should prepare an Environment Manifesto and inculcate a habit to follow it religiously. The Director of Uttarakhand Science Education and Research Centre (USERC) and Director General of Uttarakhand State Council of Science and Technology (UCOST) VK Dhaundiyal said this while speaking at a seminar "Celebration of World Earth Day -2014" at the Rajiv Gandhi Navodaya Vidyalaya (RGNV) here on Tuesday.
Exhorting the children to become environmental activists, Dhaundiyal in his presidential address said that the manifesto can include simple things like minimal usage of plastic, collecting leaves and other organic matter and using them as manure, using the waste water of RO machine in uses like watering the plants and segregating the domestic wastes in different bins.
In his keynote address Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of National Research Development Corporation (NRDC), New Delhi Rajendra Dobhal, highlighted the need for a proper development model which could serve the earth. He said that it is an irony that, on one hand, "we are destroying the environment and at the same time making all the noises about protecting it." Giving simple examples to the students Dhobhal said that the nature automatically heals its wounds as it has a natural system and the unnecessary intervention of man has disturbed this delicate balance.
The vice-chancellor of Doon University and Uttarakhand Technical University VK Jain was the chief guest on the occasion. Jain said that the mother earth is stressed by its more than 7 billion children. He blamed the developed countries for depleting the natural resources at an alarming pace. Jain said that the Indian Government is committed to reduce its dependence on the carbon based fuels and is planning to increase the solar power generation by 20,000 MWs by the year 2022.
The Principal of RGNV, RP Bamola, said that the children should understand the importance of environmental protection and they should assume the role of saviours of mother earth. He said that the disasters like witnessed in Kedarnath last year occurred due to ignoring the traditional wisdom of not constructing houses in near the rivers. The students of RGNV presented an Earth Song composed by their music teacher BK Shah on the occasion.
The students participated in the debate, slogan, essay and poster competitions on the occasion. In the debate competition Simran Thapa of Phool Chand Nari Shilp Inter College got the first position while in Slogan competition Ramnik Sharma of Doon Blossoms School stood first. In the Essay Competition Akanksha Sharma of Jaswant Modern School got the first prize. In the poster competition Nida Nazz of Jaswant Modern secured the first position.