NEW DELHI: In the wake of alarming levels of air pollution in the national capital, over 1,000 schoolchildren from Delhi-NCR on Wednesday joined a national movement for clean air and pledged to conserve the environment.
Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar, who could not attend the ‘Good Air Summit’ at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here due to ill health, sent a video message to the students and encouraged them to plant more trees to secure their lifetime of oxygen needs.
The students joined the ‘Good Air Movement’ that aims to cover the entire country by 2025. “Plant more trees wherever you can. If one person plants seven trees, you have arranged for a lifetime of oxygen for yourself. We are a part of the environment and it is a very important part of our lives. Save water and conserve energy. We should make every effort to save our environment,” Javadekar said. The summit, which was organised by the Integrated Health and Wellbeing Council (IHWC), seeks to make air
pollution a prominent public health issue.
About 1,500 students of 17 educational institutions, including schools, colleges, universities, and research institutions, attended the event with 10 students of Delhi schools being awarded the title of ‘Young Ambassadors of Good Air’.
Stubble burning
CPCB Member Secretary Prashant Gargava said stubble burning accounted for 44-45 per cent of air pollution in Delhi
(With PTI inputs)