PM Modi says people should pledge to work towards a cleaner, healthier and more prosperous planet
Today is Earth Day. The day is celebrated worldwide to demonstrate support for environmental protection. The day was proposed at the UNESCO conference in 1969 and the first Earth Day celebrations took place in 1970.Pic Credit- PTI
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu has called upon people to renew commitment to shape collective future on this planet by preserving and replenishing earth’s valuable resources.
In his message on World Earth Day, Mr Naidu said, as the battle against COVID-19 continues to disrupt normal lives, people may have to reflect on the existing development paradigm. He called for greater balance into development planning and making earth a more healthy and sustainable planet.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed gratitude to the planet for the abundance of care and compassion on the occasion of Earth Day.
In a tweet, Mr Modi said people should pledge to work towards a cleaner, healthier and more prosperous planet. He also lauded all those working at the forefront to defeat COVID-19.
Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar has urged people to pledge to shed greed and adopt sustainable lifestyle on the occasion of Earth Day.
Sharing a video in Twitter, Mr Javadekar said, Indian lifestyle, which is completely environment-friendly, is an example of how to move ahead. He said, some people have the view that cutting down consumption will make economy suffer, which is wrong. He said, cutting down certain kinds of consumption means consuming other kinds of products which brings equity and justice.
Mr Javadekar said, the current lockdown due to COVID-19 has already given the message that unless there is social justice, a nation cannot fight such menaces effectively. He said on Earth Day, people should also resolve to protest against malpractices.
The Minister recalled Mahatma Gandhi’s words that the world has enough for everyone’s need, but not greed. He said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has brought lifestyle issue into the Climate Change discourse.
The Prime Minister, in a tweet this morning, gave a shout-out to all those working at the forefront to defeat COVID-19.
On International Day of Mother Earth, we all express gratitude to our planet for the abundance of care & compassion. Let us pledge to work towards a cleaner, healthier & more prosperous planet.
A shout out to all those working at the forefront to defeat COVID-19. #EarthDay2020— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 22, 2020
The Earth Day is celebrated across the world on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. The first Earth Day was focused on the United States when Americans took to the streets with a peaceful call for environmental reform following an oil spill off the coast of California.
Half a century later, the day calls for people to unite in the fight against global pandemic, COVID-19, which has infected over 2 million people across the globe.
“Amid the recent outbreak, we encourage people to rise up but to do so safely and responsibly – in many cases, that means using our voices to drive action online rather than in person,” said Kathleen Rogers, President of Earth Day Network.