LS members express concern about global warming

New Delhi, May 8 (UNI) Initiating a discussion on Global Warming in the Lok Sabha, CPI's C K Chandrappan (CPI) raised the serious issue of the melting of glaciers which would initially cause a rise in the water level in Himalayan rivers but later lead to them drying up.

''There are enough indications of the warming up of the Tibetan plateu and it would have an adverse impact on some of our important rivers, namely Brahmaputra in the North East and Ganga, Yamuna and Indus in the North and Central India.

He said not only are the glaciers melting but the icecap in the Arctic and Antarctic regions are also being affected.

Though initially there will be flooding in the affected rivers in the wake of their rising water levels but later on these rivers will ultimately dry up which could led to desertification, Mr Chandrappan said, adding that various reports have already indicated that the Indo-Gangetic plain would be most dangerously affected.

Charging the developed countries with not cooperating on this issue, particularly the US which has pulled out of the Kyoto agreement in 2001, he said they were instead blaming the developing countries for the generation of greenhouse gases.

''This theory is not acceptable to us, so India, China and Brazilshould work together and initiate joint steps in this direction,'' he said and urged the goverment to take immediate steps to combat this menace, which could have a catastrophic effext on the country.

Participating in the discussion, Maneka Gandhi (BJP) said that the problem could not be solved by merely criticising the US.

''It is also a fact the developing countries and more specifically the Asian nations were responsible for the generation of Methane gas which is also a greenhouse gas,'' she said.

Noting the convention and practice of burning of the used crop land at the end of the farming session generates huge heat and gas which is a major factor for global warming, she called on the goverment to immediately ban this practice.

''We are already 20 per cent in the Global warming crisis and if no steps are taken right now, we will not be able to save ourselves from its catastrophic effect,'' she said.

She said the Goverment should impose a moratorium on the cutting of forest trees at least for a period of ten years and simultaneously go in for mass tree plantation on selected sites.

Mrs Gandhi said the Goverment must take effective steps for the generation of wind and solar energy. The Goverment should imediately put a total ban on the use of yellow lamp and replace it with Compact Flourocent Lamps (CFL).

Goverment should enfore that only fuel efficient cars are produced and give stress on the generation of hydel power, she added.

Congress' Sandeep Dikshit (Cong) said it seemed that the government was not at all concerned at this major issue, and pleaded for taking this up on a war footing.

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