BHUBANESWAR: President Droupadi Murmu while delivering her convocation address at Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University, Baripada on Saturday said human beings should live in harmony with nature.
She said that the world is facing huge challenges of global warming and climate change. India has set an example for the world to adopt a nature-friendly lifestyle, which is called Lifestyle for the Environment or LiFE, she added.
“In our tradition, it is believed that trees, plants, mountains, rivers all have life and not only humans but also all living beings are children of nature. Therefore, it is the duty of all human beings to live in harmony with nature,” said the President.
She said that the Similipal National Park holds a globally important place in terms of biodiversity. She expressed confidence that the students and teachers at the university would find a way to protect biodiversity through their research and innovation.
“Safeguarding the biodiversity, wildlife and preventing forest fires are of paramount importance for us. It is heartening to know the efforts of the university students and national service scheme (NSS) volunteers to control the forest fires and organize awareness programmes,” she added.
The President appreciated the university for establishing the ‘Sacred Grove’ in its campus with the aim to preserve the bedrock of tribal practices and cultural traditions. “Sacred Grove is important for the conservation of the environment and local biodiversity. It is also one of the best examples of community-based management of natural resources,” she added.
“It is imperative that we leverage 21st century technology such as smart sensors, satellite systems, internet of things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI) and others to address the challenges related to climate change, forest protection and biodiversity. Similipal’s unexplored territories harbor many unidentified species of flora and fauna that need to be studied, protected and brought to the attention of the world,” said the President.
Murmu gave away honorary doctorate degrees to eminent personalities like Rajyogini Brahmakumari Kamalesh from spiritual field, singer Swarupa Chakravarty, tribal music and researcher Binapani Mohanta, comptroller and auditor general of India Girish Chandra Murmu, film director Nandita Das, artist Sangram Keshari Mohanty, litterateur Arjun Charan Hembram and scientist and vice-chairman of Odisha state higher education council Asoka Kumar Das. Except the spiritual leader and the scientist, the other six personalities belong to Mayurbhanj district.
