The first ever International Centre for
Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)-India Day will be celebrated here tomorrow.
The Ministry of Environment & Forests and the International Centre for
Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) have jointly organized it. ICIMOD, an
intergovernmental institution, brings together a partnership of eight regional
member countries namely Afghanistan, Nepal, India, China, Pakistan, Myanmar,
Bangladesh and Bhutan and institutions within and outside the region. The event
is mainly to take stock, highlight the activities and achievements, and to
further strengthen collaboration of ICIMOD in India. The event provides an
opportunity to bring together the potential partners in India so as to
intensify participation in addressing issues of mutual interest at local and
regional level.
Smt. Jayanthi
Natarajan, Minister of State (IC), Ministry of
Environment & Forests, will be the Chief Guest, and Shri Vilasrao Deshmukh, Minister for
Science & Technology, GoI, will preside over the
inaugural session of ICIMOD-India day celebration. Dr. Andreas Schield, Director General, ICIMOD will host the event.
Senior level officials from various Ministries, Government Departments and
Academia in India and scientists from ICIMOD will interact and deliberate on
issues of priority attention in the Himalaya. Among others, the Dignitaries
from Corporate Sector, will participate and exchange views with the thematic
experts.
Considering the fragility
and importance of the Himalaya, Government of India has taken several initiatives
towards sustainable development of the Himalayan region and also strengthening
the regional collaboration with organizations like ICIMOD. Among others, G. B.
Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development (GBPIHED), an
Autonomous Institute of MoEF, has been established to
advance scientific knowledge and ensure environmentally sound development in
the entire Indian Himalayan Region (IHR). Both ICIMOD and GBPIHED,
have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
on Sept 25, 2008 to increase the potential for mutually
beneficial research work, enable efficient co-ordination and ensure the
sustainability of partnership. Further, it was also to appreciate each other’s
comparative advantages and collaborate to achieve the environmentally
sustainable development in IHR through establishing a mutually agreed mechanism
of experience sharing.
The theme of the day-long conference is ‘Challenges in Climate
Change Resilience and Adaptation – Potential for Collaboration between ICIMOD
and India’. The discussion will cover subjects like ICIMOD
Current Priorities and Programmes, The country profile of India in the HKH
region, India-ICIMOD collaboration: Status and Review, perspectives for
Regional cooperation, Green Economy: Challenges for Indian Himalayas, Green
India Mission: Mountain Perspectives, Mountain Green Economy, Glacial Melting
and Black Carbon: Indian Initiative, Atmospheric Change in the HKH Region:
Potential Role of a Regional Organisation like ICIMOD, Ecosystem management
Approach in Trans-boundary Landscapes-Indian Experience, Perspectives on National
Mission on sustainability of Himalayan Ecosystems and Himalayan Climate Change
Adaptation Programme: Process Appraisal.
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KP/DB