TAWANG, 6 Aug: “Pakke Declaration 2047 aims to make our country carbon emission-free, and this can become possible through our collective effort,” Tawang Deputy Commissioner (i/c) Rinchin Leta said during a programme themed ‘Observation of Pakke 2047 Declaration’, organised at the government higher secondary school here on Saturday.
During the programme, organised by the education department, the DC said also that “global warming is manmade and we can minimise this greenhouse effect by making small changes in our lifestyle.”
He advised the students to “study sincerely and work towards achieving your aims in life,” and added that “drugs consumption and increase in theft cases are all interrelated.”
DMO Dr Rinchin Neema spoke on climate change and its impact on people’s health and wellbeing. “Every year, eight lakh people die because of climate change,” he said.
He further said that vector-borne diseases are increasing, and cited the example of Tawang, saying that “the district did not have cases of malaria some 10 years back, but nowadays mosquitoes are found.”
“Underdeveloped and developing countries are more vulnerable to climate change problems,” he added.
DFO Piyush Gaikwad informed that, “in the last 40 years, the temperature of the Earth increased by 0.6 degrees, and if it goes on increasing, all the glaciers will melt.”
“Due to increase in population, the pressure on natural resources is increasing,” he said. “Huge rainfall is occurring in the hill districts of Arunachal and is absorbed by the trees. If these trees are not preserved, this will cause landslides and floods,” he said.
The DFO added that “forest fires are the highest in Arunachal and are rising, and this cannot be stopped without community involvement.”
Speaking on the drugs menace, he said that “people are not aware of ill-effects and there is lack of social support.”
“Peer pressure and easy drug trafficking in the hill state can be minimised only through awareness,” he added.
DDSE Hridhar Phuntso, TMES secretary-general Kesang Norbu, panchayat leader Tenzin Monpa and Tawang District Students’ Union president Sang Dhondup also spoke. (DIPRO)
