Union Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday said that states are important partners in implementing the vision to tackle climate change in the country and asked them to come out with their own initiatives in this regard beyond implementing central policies.
He underlined that both the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) and State Action Plan on Climate Change (SAPCC) had been conceptualized almost a decade ago and will be revised to reflect the current realities. The NAPCC and SAPCC guide climate actions in the country.
Harsh Vardhan said the fight against climate change has to become a social movement and asked state governments to increasingly play a proactive role in implementation of climate policies.
“States must create their own initiatives for climate action beyond implementing central policies. The issues of transfer of technology and finance continue to be major issues in dealing with climate change,” the Minister said at the inaugural session of the national workshop on ‘Taking forward the climate agenda’.
He also asked the states to undertake ambitious climate action on both mitigation as well as adaptation beyond the schemes of central government. “The ministry is taking steps for revision for the national missions of NAPCC as well as the SAPCCs to reflect the current climate change realities,” an official statement quoting the Minister said. He asked the state governments to take measures to strengthen the climate change nodal departments by providing adequate resources to the departments, so that they can function optimally.