Noble cause: RSS Sarsanghchalak Dr Mohan Bhagwat
Haridwar: RSS Sarsanghchalak Dr Mohan Bhagwat termed environmental protection an integral part of Indian culture and called upon enlightened and aware people of the society to make a meaningful contribution in this direction. In a seminar organised at Haridwar. Sarsanghchalak said that work for environmental protection would have to be expedited. This is our social responsibility, he said at the seminar organised under the aegis of Environment Committee Mahakumbh Haridwar 2021.
A number of environmental activities have been carried out to ensure that Kumbh Mela, which started in Haridwar on April 1, is polythene-free. For this, the Environment Committee Mahakumbh Haridwar 2021 has been formed. Under this committee, 16 sub-committees of different groups like merchants, saints, women, educational institutions and NGOs have been formed, to spread awareness among social classes, to keep Kumbh clean and polythene free. Vice-chancellors of 40 universities from different parts of the country also attended the seminar. Educational institutions across the country are being connected with a larger environmental protection campaign. Dr Bhagwat said no separate work is done to conserve nature in the Hindu tradition. It is a part of life, which is involved in every aspect of our personal and social life. It is always included in our natural love for nature. ‘
Talking about the environment, Dr Bhagwat said that it is imperative for everyone to understand that natural surroundings are all related to each other. You cannot forget the forest while talking about water, or you cannot forget water while working on the problem of soil. This is one aspect of the solution. The second aspect is the use of the combined power of society. Personal effort is important, but if it is not made a part of social effort, we cannot achieve our goal.
He said that it is not the business of nature to fulfil greed. Even after knowing the suitability and merit of everything, the sense of mind should not be changed. With the power of unity in diversity, India has stood steadfast even today, facing all the disasters in the world. It will always be ahead. Development and environment are not opposed to each other. They will write a new history of development. Even in history, we were number one in the world; despite that, there was no problem related to the environment, said Dr Bhagwat. Bharat has been providing food to the world by farming for the last 6000 years. Despite this, the land here is still fertile. This is proof that we are an integral part of the environment. The development of the world is only through the development of the environment. We as human beings are the greatest, and we have to consider environment after abandoning our ego. If we change our behaviour, then surely the conditions in the environment will also change. The work of environmental activists is to change the behaviour of those who pollute the environment.
Vice-Chancellor Sanskriti University, Dr Chinmay Pandey, linked the importance of Kumbh with Amrit Manthan’s story in the Indian Sanatan tradition. He said that only the Ganges of good fortune could emerge from the saga of struggle. Today, environmental conditions are important because every eigth death in the world is due to air pollution. Our efforts towards environmental protection are not going to be confined to Kumbh. Together with India’s educational institutions, we will continue to work in this way to convert this poison spread in the environment into nectar, said Dr Pandey.
On the occasion, Dr Bhagwat also released ‘Paryavaran Perspective’, a monthly magazine on environment protection. Through the magazine, efforts will be made to enlighten society towards the commendable efforts being made in environment protection.
