Email
Print
ShareAhmedabad, Ahmedabad: Undesired changes in the atmosphere pose a great challenge to society, and there is a need to think about corporate social responsibility (CSR) from a new angle to promote sustainable development in order to mitigate the impact of global warming, with focus on the use of agriculture and agro-forestry.
This was the consensus that the speakers reached at a workshop on 'Corporate social responsibility: The role of industry in mitigating global warming', organised by the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) and the International School for Public Leadership, on Saturday.
The industry has open land including industrial plots, farmhouses and business premises which should be brought under vegetative cover instead of being used for landscaping, said Kirit Shelat, a retired IAS officer, during his inaugural speech.
Shelat said that industry can work directly by providing all open spaces with vegetative cover or converting them into work of the nearby villages. "If the industry cannot carry out such projects, it should set up its own foundation for this purpose or rope in some approved trusts or NGOs," he said.
SK Nanda, principal secretary, forests and environment, said that the people are the custodians of the elements of nature and that there is need for industry to have CSR activities to take care of these elements. "Industry should stick with the Mahajan tradition, which reflects Mahatma Gandhi's principle of trusteeship," he said.
A need to promote tree plantation at the community level was also felt during the workshop. Neem and mango trees catch the most dust, and the youth should be roped in to plant more such trees. "The chamber should provide the youth with certification for planting trees," Nanda said. He said that there is no forest area in Anand district, yet it has 79 trees per hectare because of agro-forestry.
Kantisen Shroff, chairman, Shroff Group of Voluntary Organisation; MN Varhaneya, vice-chancellor, Anand Agricultural University; and Kartikeya Sarabhai, director, Centre for Environment Education, were present at the workshop.
Lukewarm response to GCCI workshop
The workshop on global warming organised by GCCI received a lukewarm response as only a few participants turned up for the event. The chamber was forced to make its staff members sit in the hall, as a result. "The subject was difficult for the members, apart from being an unattractive one," a senior GCCI member said. He said that the low attendance discourages good speakers from coming to such programmes and also hurts the prestige of the body. The chamber had sent invitations to around 40 members of its executive committee, but only a handful attended the workshop. Rupesh Shah, president, GCCI, said that because of the marriage season, the attendance was much lower than expected.
