*Punjab signs MoU with International Organization to fight Climate Change*

Chandigarh, July 28-  In a path breaking initiative aimed at checking global warming, the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann led Punjab Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for becoming the member of prestigious Global Network called Under2 Coalition, to address the issue of Climate Change.

With this MoU, Punjab has become a member of largest network of 221 States /Provincial Governments of 43 Countries of world, committed to reduce CO2 & Green House Gases (GHG) emissions in line with the Paris Agreement, adopted during UNFCC-COP 21 held at Paris in 2015.

Enviorment Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer said that the signing of this MoU becomes all the more relevant when impacts of climate change are unprecedented in scale like shifting weather patterns that threaten food production, to rising sea levels that increase the risk of catastrophic flooding & associated health related issues. India is also among the high-risk countries as it ranked 7th in the Global Climate Risk Index 2021.

The Minister hoped that collaboration would help in harnessing the strategic knowledge & technical support for undertaking comprehensive activities for combating climate change. He urged all the citizens of Punjab to adopt eco & nature friendly way of living.

Meet Hayer reiterated the State’s commitment to build a robust climate-resilient ecosystem and convert the climate vulnerabilities into opportunities. He emphasised that Government of Punjab is keen to collaborate with International & National Organization agencies to address State specific climate change concerns.

The MoU was signed by Dr. Manish Kumar, IFS, Director, Environment & Climate Change on behalf of State Government and Ms. Divya Sharma, India Executive Director, Climate Group on behalf of Under2 Coalition.

Secretary Science, Technology & Environment Rahul Tewari informed that beside showcasing State’s salient achievement at various international forums, collaboration would certainly help the State in strengthening its efforts on Climate resilience with the technical support of Climate Group & Under2 Coalition members through exchange of knowledge & ideas.