There is a need to set up an Experts Advisory Group devoted to the study of specific problems and subjects concerning Sundarban Region, the world?s third largest mangrove forests but fragile and eco-sensitive area falling under both India and Bangladesh, suggested the new Final Draft Document on ?Vision for the Sundarban Region: Rationale and Structure for Joint Action?.
The Vision Document, released here in New Delhi by Trinamul Congress MP and scholar Prof. Saugata Bose, said the Advisory Group, consisting of independent technical and scientific experts, can potentially contribute towards coordination and followup of the approved programmes and projects and for the submission of new proposals of common interest, as decided by the Joint Working Group (JWG) on Sundarbans.
The Vision Document is prepared by Observer Research Foundation (ORF) plus group, working under Bangladesh-India Sundarban Region Cooperation Initiative (BI-SRCI) consortium, implementing a knowledgement based advocacy initiative to facilitate and support effective bilateral cooperation in the Sundarban region.
Besides ORF, the group includes IDSA (Delhi), International Water Association, Policy Research Institute (Dhaka), EnGIO (Kolkata), the World Bank and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), India.
On the occasion, a film on Sundarbans, directed by Dheeraj Sarthak, was shown which depicted how the climate change, the rising waters and lashing rains are forcing people out of their traditional agricultural jobs and making life miserable for them, with not enough basic facilities.
Releasing the draft Vision Docuent, Prof. Saugata Bose, the grandson of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, stressed on the need for creating a network to make borders with concern for the local people. He said the people of the region should be able to cross the border with dignity for livelihood purposes.
Prof. Bose said if the Europeans countries could leave behind the rigidities of nation states and jointly work on Rhine Valley, there is no reason why we also cannot do it for the sake of the eco-system of the region, the people and development of the region.
Chairing the event, Mr. Pinak Chakravarty, former High Commissioner to Bangladesh and now an Advisor to ORF, said India and Bangladesh can do a lot more to preserve the sensitive Sundarban Region and make people?s life much better. He pointed out that a Joint Working Group is working on the various issues of the region.
He agreed that an Advisory Group of experts can provide better inputs and help to assist the JWG in its mission.
Pointing out that the MoU of 2011 has been working very slow, Bangladesh High Commissioner Syed Muazzem Ali suggested that the JWG should meet more regularly and take concrete steps for cooperation.
He said the challenge is how to sustain the eco-system while meeting the livelihood issues of the people in the region. He reminded that the diminishing Royal Bengal Tigers are the joint property of Bangladesh and India.
Mr. J M Mauskar, adviser, ORF and a member of the PM?s environment council, suggested that one should move one step at a time and exchange of information can be the first step. He also stressed that the targets and actions should be clear, pointing out that the SDG 2025 targets are not clear.
(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)
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