Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna on Monday urged scientists and experts to evolve an environment-sensitive policy to usher in sustainable development in the ecologically fragile Himalayan region.
Inaugurating the workshop ‘Mountain Meteorology and Landslides: Way Forward With Special Reference to Uttarakhand State’ at the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG) here, Mr. Bahuguna said he was confident that the scientists would help create a sustainable development model.
The workshop has been co-sponsored by the National Disaster Management Authority.
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Mr. Bahuguna wanted the experts to develop an effective early warning system for earthquakes, cloud bursts, flash floods, landslips and other extreme weather conditions. The warnings should be area specific so that people and the government could take timely precautionary measures.
He said this was necessary as people on the hills felt unsafe and wanted to migrate to the plains, which would be disastrous for national security as Uttarakhand had long stretches of international boundaries.
“Our border villages need to be inhabited by a happy population who, besides putting in hard work for survival, should have the feeling that the benefits of development schemes are also reaching them,” he said.
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A.K. Gupta, director, WIHG, hoped the two-day deliberations would help in hammering out recommendations that would help in the sustainable redevelopment of Uttarakhand.
The mid-June disaster had opened up research in the field of hydrometeorology. Several factors like meteorology, geology and hydraulics had come into play and the disaster could be understood only through a multi-disciplinary team, Dr. Gupta said.