GUWAHATI: Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has urged policy makers, pressure groups and researchers to prepare a roadmap for taking sustainable measures to preserve the environment.
Addressing the 5th North East Green Summit at IIT-Guwahati on Monday, Sonowal urged the policy makers, NGOs, academia and politicians attending the summit to deliberate on various aspects of the environment and come up with sustainable measures for its preservation.
“The COVID-19 pandemic taught us how important it is to preserve the sanctity of nature and why timely action must be taken in this regard,” he said.
The chief minister highlighted the state government’s initiatives to protect the environment, asserting that the economy cannot be developed at the cost of the ecology.
He informed that the government has been committed in its mission to plant 10 crore trees across the state and said that it has been a successful endeavour for environmental protection as more than 8 crore saplings have already been planted.
Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of making Northeast the organic hub of the country, Sonowal hailed the launch of schemes like Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana for providing free LPG connections to poor women to reduce their hardships and minimise dependence on wood and deforestation activities.
He highlighted the recent collaboration of the state government with the Israeli government in the agriculture sector and hoped for technological solutions for harnessing the potential of natural water sources for economic development.
The chief minister further informed about the government’s commitment to achieve industrial growth in the state while maintaining environmental balance.
