Minister for Forests & Social Welfare, Bali Bhagat today called upon the educational institutions to play a pro-active role in conservation and promotion of environment in the State, adding that students are the best ambassadors who can create awareness at homes and in their surroundings, which can go a long way in preservation of natural resources to balance the ecology of Jammu and Kashmir.Speaking at an annual day function of K.S. Public School here today, the Minister appealed the management of all the educational institutions (government/private) to organize special lectures/seminars on the vital subject of environment in their institutions and help in addressing this sensitive issue which is a major threat to the mankind across the globe. He said environment degradation is a cause of concern for everyone and it needs to be tackled with collective and coordinated efforts.
He suggested the teachers and parents to use special occasions like birth/marriage/death anniversaries and other festivals to plant trees at their homes, localities to check climate change and global warming. He said that a massive awareness and plantation drive across the State has been launched to rejuvenate the degraded forests and reversing the adverse affects on planet due to environment hazards. He said Government has drawn up a comprehensive plan to deal with this sensitive issue, but, it is not possible without the active support of the entire society, the Minister asserted.Lauding the role of the private sector in the field of education, the Minister said that private institutions are doing commendable job in providing quality education to the students and supplementing the government efforts in improving the literacy rate in the State. He called for promotion of moral education and other co-curricular.