HYDERABAD: The state government has formed a state steering committee headed by chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and consisting of ministers to oversee the arrangements for the biggest-ever international conference on biodiversity the city will be hosting from October 1 to 19.
The Conference of Parties (CoP) on Biodeversity, to be held for the first time in India, will be the biggest event ever held in independent India. Ministerial delegations from 193 countries will participate in it.
The participating dignitaries will include 20 heads of state and ministers from 90 countries. India's President, vice-president, prime minister will be the chief guests.
The United Nations, the central and state governments and the government of Andhra Pradesh will be financing the event for which more than Rs 1,000 crore will be needed .
A state-level coordination committee has also been formed with the chief secretary as its head.
Nodal committees headed by the principal secretaries have also been formed to take care of reception, accommodation, food and protocol, transport, security, city beautification, cultural programmes, exhibitions, media, medical and health, etc.
At a meeting held on Saturday with ministers, chief secretary, mayor and others, the chief minister said the convention was going to be a prestigious event not only for the central government but also for the state government and the event had to be conducted in a befitting manner. He said all stakeholders should rise to the occasion in a coordinated manner to give the city a facelift.
It will be the 11th International CoP. The last conference was held at Nagoya in Japan. Hyderabad has been chosen as the venue of the coming event in view of its status as the biodiversity capital of the country.
The chief minister asked the officials to arrange world-class cultural programmes to showcase India and State.