A five day-long “International Conference on Soil and Water Resources Management for Climate Smart Agriculture and Global Food and Livelihood Security” was inaugurated at the National Agricultural Science Centre Complex in New Delhi on Tuesday. Dr.Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary (DARE) & Director General (ICAR) inaugurated the global event.
The conference is being organized jointly by the Soil Conservation Society of India in association with World Association of Soil and Water Conservation (WASWAC), China and International Soil Conservation Organization (ISCO), U.S.A. with the objective to deliberate upon the various issues and challenges of soil and water conservation.
Highlighting the recent trends in the climate change in the country and the world as a whole, Dr. Mohapatra expressed his concerns about the degradation of soil and water resources that is a threat to productive and sustainable agriculture.
Mohapatra said the ever-rising climatic temperature is indeed a matter of great concern as it affects the human life drastically. He regarded the various human activities as main contributors to the severe climate changes. He also urged to adopt several measures to minimize the impacts of the climate change.
The Director General briefed about the Government of India’s initiatives for enhancing the food and agricultural production efficiencies in the country. He also outlined the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of doubling the farmers’ income by the Year – 2022.
The Guest of Honor, Prof. Li Rui, President, WASWAC, China applauded the ICAR’s initiative for organizing the International Conference to discuss on such relevant issues of soil and water conservation. Prof. Rui regarded the overexploitation of soil and water as one of the most serious concerns that require immediate attention.
Prof. (Dr.) Suraj Bhan, President, Soil Conservation Society of India highlighted the Government’s initiative to provide safe drinking water through the pipeline to every household by creating a separate Ministry of Jal Shakti. He stressed on the huge potential for water conservation through the rain water harvesting in the country. Bhan urged for judicious use of the natural resources as these are the real treasures of the planet earth.
Dr. Sanjay Arora, Convener & Vice-President, Soil Conservation Society of India and Prof. Ildefonso PlaSentis, President, ISCO along with Dr. Samir A. el-Swaify, Coordinator, ISCO, U.S.A. were also present during the occasion.
The occasion also marked the releasing of the “Special Issue of Indian Farming by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research” and “7 Years of International Conference” and “Abstract Book of the Conference”.
The dignitaries also conferred the “Soil Conservation Society of India (SCSI) Awards – 2019” to various scientists and students for their contributions in the respective fields of researches. A total of 400 Delegates from 21 countries namely China, Japan, Spain and Egypt, etc., are participating in the conference.