KARACHI: The treasury during the Sindh Assembly session singled out the climate change that makes the farmers skip the cotton crop cultivation this season, but the opposition blamed the PPP’s rule for its “zero” performance to fight the varying atmospheric conditions.

“The changing climate has hit Sindh the most,” Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho, the Sindh Health Minister told the house while speaking on an adjournment motion tabled by the PPP’s lady legislator, Sharmila Faruqui on the climate change.

She said that the varying climate pattern causes a cotton crop wastage, which has made the farmers opt out its cultivation this season.

“The underground water quality is substandard as we need quality water for crops,” she recommended.

The province also lacks sewage treatment plants, she informed the assembly, advising for setting up water cleaning units to detoxify sewerage muck.

Work on installing the solar and wind energy generating plants is needed since carbon levels in the atmosphere are scaling up, she said and added that the government should step up to ban high smoke emitting vehicles from roads.

Sea erosion has also created environmental problems, she said, adding that the public transportation system should be converted from conventional fuel oil energy into an electric one. Mangroves cultivation should further continue to fight off the negative impacts of the climate change, besides the RO plants at hospitals are also required, Dr Azra was of the view.

Citing a World Bank report, MMA’s Syed Abdul Rasheed said that the recent floods have claimed over 2000 lives in Sindh with affecting eight million people and causing over Rs30 billion financial losses. He said that the Sindh government’s performance to tackle the changing climate is “zero”. “There is a need for the Sindh government to show seriousness,” he said.

He said that a bill on the climate change, which he had submitted to the assembly secretariat, fell prey to the “biasness” and could not be tabled in the house.

Sharmila Faruqui, who was the mover, ruled out forecasting the negative impacts of the climate change as there are several other nations like Pakistan, which may face the shock.

The country has to be ready and prepared for the climate change devastations that could kill 25000 more people in its course, she said, suggesting an awareness drive in the society.

MQM’s Rashid Khilji said that a policy to combat the adverse effects of the climate is not on the government’s priority. He urged for the policies continuation to scale back devastations.

“We are not giving a better Sindh for our coming generations,” he said that the developed nations are utilizing maximum of their natural resources to find a solution to the environmental challenges.

He sought a policy statement from the Sindh government on the climate change, saying that carbon levels are growing to affect the living creatures.

Sindh Irrigation Minister, Jam Khan Shoro termed the climate change a big threat to Sindh, saying the varying weather condition hit hard the human.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023