UAF seminar: ‘Better management vital to mitigate flood devastation’

Scientists, politicians urged to tackle <br /> climate change.

FAISALABAD: Better water and agriculture management as well as more accurate climate change forecasts are needed to deal with the devastation caused by floods, said participants at a seminar at the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF) on Tuesday.

The seminar, Global changes and Pakistani perspective, had been organised by the Agro-Climatology Lab, Department of Agronomy of UAF.

Chairing the inaugural session, Education and Law Minister Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan said that the government was taking steps for the rehabilitation of the flood victims.

“The country is passing through difficult times. The floods have wreaked havoc in the province. All political parties should come forward and play their role in helping the flood-affected people,” he said.

He urged scientists and policymakers to tackle climate change. “The changes in the climate have spread massive devastation in the form of floods and drought,” he said. Climate change had affected the agriculture sector which was the backbone of the country’s economy, he said.

He said UAF scientists should draw up a comprehensive roadmap in order to deal with climate change issues. He congratulated the UAF on becoming the first-ever Pakistani educational institution to be included in the list of the top 100 universities of the world.

Earlier, UAF Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan said that better preparations should be made to deal with natural calamities.

He said that the UAF staff and students had donated relief items for the flood-affected people.

Dr Toshio Koike from the University of Tokyo said that Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) was being developed to make joint efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change.

“Japan is using weather prediction, climate assessment, and seasonal models that help it face different challenges confronting the country.

Inter-disciplinarily and trans-disciplinarily approaches must be promoted for sustainable development,” he said.

Federal Parliamentary Secretary on Economic Affairs Rana Muhammad Afzal called for stepping up efforts to deal with climate change.

Prof Dr Ashfaq Ahmad Chattha said that integrated approaches about water, climate and agriculture would help decrease the damages caused by natural calamities.

Dr Fahad Rasool said that melting glaciers were a cause of concern for the people of the sub-continent. “Pakistan is blessed with tremendous natural resources. We have to utilise these resources rationally to face future challenges,” he said.

Chief Meteorologist Dr Ghulam Rasul, Dr Maheswor Shreshta from Tokyo University, Agri Engineering Dean Prof Dr Allah Bukhsh, Prof Dr Muhammad Ashfaq and Prof Dr Muhammad Jahenzeb Cheema also addressed the session.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 17^th, 2014.