Jammu/June,3: Speaker, Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly Kavinder Gupta and Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh Monday flagged off an awareness rally to mark World Environment Day here in the winter capital.
The rally, comprising environmentalist and volunteers, took off from Mini Market, Trikuta Nagar and concluded at JDA Park, Railway Road Jammu.
MLC Vikram Randhawa, Commissioner, Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) M Raju and Vice Chairman, Jammu Development Authority (JDA) Rajesh Kumar Shavan, were also present on the occasion.
Elaborating on the importance of World Environment Day, the Speaker said this day signifies the commitment to protect the environment and live in harmony with the nature. He said coordinated efforts on part of government agencies and non-governmental organizations are key to achieve the mission of Clean India envisioned by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.
The Speaker asked JDA functionaries to ensure proper lighting of park at railway road and other public spots.
While addressing the gathering, the Deputy CM said there is a need for spreading massive information and education to create awareness among the people at large about importance of personal hygiene and clean and green surroundings.
“The people of India have always believed in the umbilical relationship with nature and we regard her as Mother Nature,” the Deputy CM said, adding that indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources needs to be checked for the wellbeing of the human kind.
“When Nature is in equilibrium, our lives and the world we live in will be in balance,” he stressed.
He further said environment degradation due to pollution and global warming poses a big challenge globally. “We should celebrate and promote eco-friendly development in the country to save the environment for better future”, he added. He asked government agencies to rise to the occasion and encourage people to be part of environment conservation.
He directed the authorities to involve people to achieve effective implementation of programs aimed at addressing environmental issues and combat climate change.
The Deputy CM asserted that JMC, JDA and Housing and Urban Development Department have launched various initiatives on mission mode to address sanitation problems and facilitate planned development of the cities in the state.
He asked the public to take a pledge to collectively work towards conserving the natural resources and keeping surroundings clean and green.
Later, Speaker, Deputy CM and the MLC planted saplings at the JDA Park Railway.
Meanwhile, the participants took a pledge to protect the environment.
Mementos and cash prize were also presented to the winners of wall painting competition and Swachh Jammu Poll Public opinion held earlier as part of the environment day celebration. The awardees included students and officials of Jammu Municipal Corporation.
A Nukkad Naatak was also performed by the artists of a local theatre group to create awareness among the people about the importance of protecting environment.
