Integrating the social, economic and environmental aspects is key to ensure sustainable development in a democracy, emphasised NITI Aayog member V.K. Saraswat on Thursday.
Dr. Saraswat was here to inaugurate the Centre for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at MCR HRD Institute and also a workshop on ‘Bangaru Telangana and Sustainable Development Goals’. The new centre would guide the departments on linking SDGs with their activities.
“There are two worlds — biological and artificial — created by man. The biological world is under strain owing to lopsided development, human to human conflict, climate change and diminishing resources. The situation is so as there is no communication between the two worlds though man is the common element. We have to adopt the language of sustainability to communicate. It should be a part of each and every development decision,” he said.
“We should not use technology that we used so far as it has resulted in adverse impact on us, but use technology that will ensure sustainable development,” he said, adding any technological decision with maximum impact on environment should be shunned. A change in the mindset could be brought about only through revamping the education system right from schools to universities. Right education and teaching methodology would prepare the community — students, engineers, bureaucrats, politicians and general public — to understand and pursue SDGs, he said.
Appreciating the Telangana government for its initiatives on SDGs, he said those at the helm in the States and the Centre should learn when to say no. Citing the example of Hyderabad Metro Rail, he said if the Planning Department had said no to the surface metro rail and backed the underground metro though its relatively expensive, the city would not have been witnessing the chaos on its roads today. The underground metro is sustainable than the surface metro. The UNDP too should not support such projects with no sustainability, he felt. S. Niranjan Reddy, Vice-Chairman, Planning Board, said Telangana was in the forefront in the country in pursuing SDGs.
Mission Kakatiya for revival of tanks, Mission Bhagiratha for supplying clean drinking water to households, Haritha Haram to increase green cover and other quality education and healthcare projects were in line with SDGs prescribed by the U.N. Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao proved himself to be a visionary for thinking about the future generations and global environment.
U.N. Resident Coordinator Diego Palacios extended support to the Telangana government for creating capacity for proper implementation of the SDGs and said it was crucial for the success of U.N.’s SDGs in India.
Special Chief Secretary (Planning) and Director General, MCR HRD, B.P. Acharya detailed the efforts of State government in linking its vision for ‘Bangaru Telangana’ with the U.N.-approved SDGs for the world.
