J&K Biodiversity Council organizes a meeting on the development of City Biodiversity Index

Mayor, Srinagar Municipal Corporation, Junaid Azim Mattu was the Chief Guest of the inaugural session.

The event was also attended by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests &  (HoFF) and Chairman Jammu and Kashmir Biodiversity Council, Dr, Mohit Gera;  Director, SFRI and Addl. PCCF Asaf Mahmood Sagar, and Commissioner Srinagar  Municipal Corporation, Athar Amir Khan among others.

As Srinagar and Jammu are being developed as Smart Cities, the UT's administration has initiated the development of CBI for these Smart Cities and J&K  Biodiversity Council approached United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the task has been assigned to a renowned organisation, ICLEI, South Asia, an  official statement said.

The City Biodiversity Index is based on 23 different indicators pertaining to the Native Biodiversity Ecosystem services, governance and management of  Biodiversity. City Biodiversity Index is an important tool that enables a City  Municipal Corporation to plan and manage the city’s biodiversity towards the development of a sustainable City.

Speaking on the occasion, the Mayor congratulated the Jammu & Kashmir  Biodiversity Council for initiating the task of preparing the baseline of Biodiversity of Srinagar and the Strategy and Action Plan. He called for preservation of every  component of Biodiversity in Srinagar as a sacred cause which should be  performed with a sense of duty and earnestness.

He advocated that Urban Development and Planning Policies and priorities will  determine the fate of our Biodiversity. He said our Master Plan in Srinagar will need to be reviewed and re-conceived with the preservation of biodiversity as an integral part of the Plan.

He concluded by stating that Srinagar Municipal Corporation commits itself to work earnestly towards Biodiversity conscious planning and will extend full support to J&K Biodiversity Council.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forests spoke on the rich biodiversity of Jammu &  Kashmir and activities of J&K Biodiversity Council on documentation and conservation of the rich biodiversity of J&K with the involvement of Biodiversity  Management Committees.

Commissioner, Srinagar Municipal Corporation while speaking on the occasion expressed his concern on the challenges the city of Srinagar is facing on account of pollution of lakes and declining components of biodiversity like birds, habitat, and spread of invasive species and changing climate.

The programme Coordinator, Dr Monalisa Sen, from ICLEI South Asia conducted hands on exercises on 'Biodiversity and Ecosystem' services for all stakeholders,  including officials of the line department, members of J&K Biodiversity Council,  SMC, NGOs, and scholars/students among others.