New Delhi: Ahead of the global meet on climate change, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said India must show the world how it has been at the forefront of protecting the environment over the ages and asked the Culture Ministry to prepare a presentation in this regard.
Reviewing the activities of the Ministry here, he asked it to prepare material in a focussed manner on how India has contributed to environmental protection through the ages. The material, if developed in time, could be presented at the United Nations Climate Change Conference - COP 21 - in Paris later this year, a PMO statement quoted Modi as saying.
“India must show the world how it has been at the forefront of environment protection,” he said at the meeting, which was also attended by Minister of State for Culture, Mahesh Sharma.
The Prime Minister asked the Ministry of Culture to focus in a big way on collecting and showcasing material based on specific themes, the statement said.
For instance, he suggested a focussed effort related to different water storage and conservation practices across India through the ages, it said.
Modi had recently slammed the developed world for questioning India over climate change despite the country having one of the lowest per capita carbon gas emissions. He had said that India will set the agenda for the COP meet.
The Prime Minister also asked the Culture Ministry to work towards the development of museums, particularly high-quality ‘virtual museums', in a big way.
He specifically suggested the setting up of a world-class maritime museum at Lothal in Gujarat. He asked the ministry to draw up a comprehensive set of skilled manpower requirements and work towards meeting these needs in coordination with the Ministry of Skill Development.
Modi also said that interpretation centres being set up by the ministry at heritage sites and cities such as Varanasi should also function as hubs which generate interest among children and youth and catalyse the next generation of talent in various fields of music and culture, the statement said. He suggested that senior citizens be involved in the process of showcasing cultural heritage to tourists and nationally-televised “talent hunts” which could nurture the next generation of high-quality tourist guides for the top tourist destinations across the country.
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