Thongam Biswajit Singh and others during the launch of the
Manipur Environment Calendar 2025 in Imphal on Monday.
IMPHAL — Manipur's Forest, Environment and
Climate Change Minister, Thongam Biswajit Singh, on Monday urged the public to
end poppy plantations starting next year.
Biswajit, who also holds the Power and Agriculture
portfolios, was speaking at the Manipur Environment Calendar 2025 launch event
at the Directorate of Environment and Climate Change (DoECC) office in Imphal.
The first Manipur Environment Calendar, which highlights the
environmental days to be observed and the conservation activities undertaken in
the state, was released in 2013.
Director of DoECC, Dr. Tourangbam Brajakumar Sing, joint
directors Ph Vivekananda Sharma and Neeta Arambam, along with other officials
of the Directorate of Environment and Climate Change, were also present during
the calendar release event.
Emphasising the need for collective action to combat global
warming and climate change, Biswajit highlighted key initiatives of the
directorate, including the appointment of a state nodal agency to oversee
environmental clearances and the formation of the state environmental impact
assessment authority.
Additional measures, including social impact assessments
related to land acquisition, the establishment of the Manipur State Wetland
Authority to protect wetlands, and the creation of a river rejuvenation
committee to address river pollution, were also mentioned.
He added that district-level offices and district-level
environment monitoring cells have been established, while efforts are underway
to draft the State Environment Policy (2025-2030) and the State Environment
Report.
He also noted the completion of the Nambul River
rejuvenation project, which includes a sewage treatment plant with a capacity
of 16 MLD, in addition to the sanctioning of other rejuvenation projects for
the Imphal and Kongba rivers.
He shared that plans are also in progress to develop key
water bodies and important ponds as climate-resilient water bodies, while the
climate-resilient revival of spring-sheds and the e-flow of rivers are underway
in the state.
He further added that the North Eastern Council has also
approved a project for the collection of plastic and debris from rivers.
It may be noted that since the opening of a Media Resource
Centre at the directorate in 2019, a total of 46 media persons from the state
have been awarded media fellowships on climate change reporting.
They have since published more than 126 comprehensive
climate change stories, broadcast over 50 climate-related video stories, aired
78 radio serials/plays, 24 climate change radio talk episodes, 14 episodes of
radio plays, five episodes of DDK programmes, and telecast 10 environmental
awareness video clips on local TV channels.
