Glaciers in the Himalayas are melting at a faster rate which has led to a drop in the volume of water in the Himalayan rivers. This is a major cause for concern for the nation, said the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) director-general Ashwani Kumar here on Monday. He was speaking at the inaugural session of a five-day training programme on climate change and carbon mitigation for scientists and technologists working in the government sector.
Kumar said that abrupt climate change and extreme climatic events are of serious consequence with even a small change in the temperature being detrimental not just for humans but for all life on earth. He said that continuous melting of glaciers in the Himalayas is a cause for grave concern especially for Indian agriculture.
“As most of our perennial river systems originate in the Himalayas, the climate change which will have wider implications also posing a threat to food production system,” said the council DG.
Kumar further pointed out that India is vulnerable to be affected adversely as a consequence of climatic change with food and water security of the country likely to be affected negatively. He also spoke in some detail about the Government of India’s national action plan on climate change and its various missions. Stressing that mitigation and adaptation are two key components, he said that adaptation was going to be the key for ensuring the stability of natural resources. He urged all the scientists across sectors to join hands to ensure climate change mitigation and adaptation in various agro-climatic zones of the country.
In the first technical session, ICFRE ADG, biodiversity and climate change, TP Singh gave an introduction to climate change and carbon mitigation, Presentation was also made on climate change, status of international negotiations on the issue and the role of ICFRE.
According to officials of the council, 18 scientists from different governmental scientific organisations and universities of the country are participating in the five-day training programme. The training programme is sponsored by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India under the national programme for training of scientists and technologists working in the government sector.