Imphal, Jan 12: The governor of Manipur Dr Najma A Heptulla on Thursday launched the Clean Loktak Initiative during a simple gathering at the Raj Bhavan in Imphal.
Launching the initiative to clean Manipur’s pride–the Loktak Lake–at the Darbar Hall in Imphal Raj Bhavan, Governor Dr Heptulla said it was a matter of grave concern that the only freshwater lake in north east India had been deteriorating day by day.
As a matter of fact that the lake has been engulfed by a huge biomass and also polluted by waste materials, it is time to take stringent measures to curb the deterioration, the governor said.
Appealing to stakeholders to create awareness among the people to conserve the natural beauty and habitations around the lake, Dr Heptulla strongly advocated infusing knowledge especially to the younger generations about the lake. It is necessity for healthy livelihood too, she said. If the younger generations had been involved in the movement to save the lake, it would have been a great achievement so that all other issues could be solved, she said.
In December last year, Dr Heptulla had also expressed her desire to save Loktak, the largest freshwater lake in the northeast India region from further pollution, by taking steps to ban plastic bags and bottles in the state during the inaugural function of a 3-day media workshop on climate change reporting. The event was held as part of a series of media sensitisation initiatives by the Delhi-based Centre for Media Studies.
Loktak Lake covers a surface area of about 280 sq km. It is located in an area commonly contagious to Imphal West, Thoubal and Bishnupur districts.
The director of Institute of Bioresources and Sustainable Development, Prof. Dinabandhu Sahoo, participated in the interactions. Prof. Sahoo pointed to the need to introduce scientific methods to conserve Loktak Lake and its flora and fauna.
The day’s interaction session was held considering the deteriorating condition of the wetland and also to find ways and means to conserve it. A PowerPoint presentation about the condition of the lake was also given by Project Director L Bhagaton of the Loktak Development Authority during the day’s session.
Heads of institutions and teachers from many parts of the state attended the event.
