Parliament approves country’s largest initiative of ‘Living Indus’: Sherry

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Climate Change Senator Sherry Rehman on Thursday announced that the Parliament has approved the country’s largest ‘Living Indus’ initiative that is aimed at protecting the cradle of civilisations which was under serious threat due to environmental degradation and anthropogenic activities.

Addressing a media briefing flanked by Secretary Ministry of Climate Change Asif Hyder Shah, the minister unveiled the salient features of the project that has been conceived after thorough consultations with the academia, experts, stakeholders and provincial governments.

Senator Sherry Rehman said River Indus was the mother of the nation as it fed the entire agriculture and humanity living around it from the north to the south.

“We will have to ensure development in harmony with nature not against the nature.” The United Nations, she said, had assisted the Ministry of Climate Change to develop a detailed report on River Indus to devise a well thought out strategy to initiate its conservation and restoration as a living river.

The minister underlined that the nature, topography and biodiversity of Indus River changes with every area it passes by. “The marine species is under threat whereas the most at risk are the humans living across the mighty river.

The River Indus has exploded due to massive floods in 2010 and in recent torrential rains.

“We will have to find ways to revive natural routes of Indus River.”