Mumbai June 5,2021

Ali Yavar Jung National Institute of Speech and Hearing Disabilities (Divyangjan) celebrated World Environment Day by organising webinar and planting trees in its campus in Mumbai, today. Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Ramdas Athavale visited the institute and planted trees as part of the celebration.

The Minister also participated in a virtual interactive national webinar on the theme ‘Sapling of Hope: the New Beginning’ for persons with disabilities and their parents, with a special focus on speech and hearing disabilities.

Speaking on the occasion, Athavale said that "We all understood the importance of oxygen during ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Trees provide huge amount of oxygen to us without any expectation. We should plant more trees and take good care of them. If our environment is healthy, we will be healthy too. We should always keep in mind that we all have a responsibility to keep our environment healthy."

While interacting with the participants, he appealed to everyone to plant 100 trees in their lives as part of their contribution towards environment protection.

Director of the institute Dr. Suni Marinam Mathew said that the webinar ‘Sapling of Hope: the New Beginning’ is organised to explain the importance of trees to the disabled children. Head of the Education Department of the Institute Dr. Varsha Gatthu,  explained the concept of “Sustainable Development Goals” of the United Nations. She said that environment is the 15th goal and explained its relationship with food, energy and other goals.

Director of the Samvad Karnbadhir Prabodhini, Chhaya Ghadge,  guided children on how to make seedlings from tree tubers, vines, etc. and how to cultivate them.

Divyang students from various branches of the institute along with their parents participated in this national webinar.

The function was organised to encourage persons with disabilities to participate in the global movement that can make peace with nature for the restoration of the ecosystem.

AYJNISHD(D)'s World Environment Day celebration was set on the theme ‘Reimagine, Recreate and Restore Ecosystem’. This year’s theme for World Environment Day 2021 is ‘Ecosystem Restoration’.

Ali Yavar Jung National Institute of Speech and Hearing Disabilities (Divyangjan) is one of the apex National Institutes working for the rehabilitation of persons with speech and hearing disabilities across India under the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Govt. of India

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