KASKI, OCTOBER 18
The local residents of Mustang district have demanded with Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal hat he put in place a new programme to reduce the adverse effects of climate change.
At an interaction organised by the Annapurna Conservation Area Project in Jomsom, the district headquarters of Mustang, today, they requested PM Dahal for the same in view of the damages on human and material goods incurred due to climate change.
Chandra Bahadur Thakali, one of the local residents, shared that they drew the attention of the PM towards climate action. "Our district is the hardest hit when it comes to climate change.
The temperature is increasing here. The glaciers are melting alarmingly due to which people in Upper Mustang are displaced."
Thakali further bemoaned that the problems of pest and insects were increasing in the crops here such as apples and other produce due to climate change. He explained, "The snowfall that ought to occur during January or February occurs in March and April which is detrimental for the crops such as apple farming."
According to him, the number of domestic animals was decreasing in Mustang lately.
Similarly, Baragung Muktichhetra Rural Municipality Chairperson Rinjing Jamgel Gurung said that the unseasonal snowfall and rainfall had caused damage in the rural municipality. "It rained continuously for a week last year during Dashain festival which hugely damaged crops."
Also, he said that the flood in Kagakhola this monsoon caused a great loss of properties in Kagbeni area. The federal government should pay due attention to minimise the damage caused by climate change, he viewed.
Likewise, Province Assembly member Bikal Sherchan called for environment developmental endeavors.
He emphasized collaboration among the three-tiers of government for climate action such as reduction of fuel consumption, conservation of biodiversity and minimising of greenhouse gas emission among others to reduce the risk of climate change-induced disasters.
A version of this article appears in the print on October 19, 2023, of The Himalayan Times
