Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra today stressed on the need to involve students and NGOs to generate greater awareness about the impact of climate change.

The Governor was speaking after an interaction with a student, who had participated at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held at Durban in South Africa from November 28 to December 9.

Shreya Bharti, an 11th class student of Heritage School was among the four Eco-Club students selected to represent the country at the Conference as part of the official Indian delegation.

She met the Governor today, and was accompanied by Dr C M Seth, Chairperson, World Wide Fund for Nature, India (J&K Chapter) and her economics teacher.

The Governor observed that climate change shall affect all forms of life, and would cause wide-ranging adverse consequences on varied fronts. Off season rains and snows shall have impact on the traditional cropping patterns.

Describing students as future leaders, Vohra said that their involvement in awareness generation campaigns can make a significant difference on the way we look at various issues.

He said that essays, articles and other write-ups of students, in different languages, could be published in journals and newspapers to disseminate awareness about climate change.

He said that the universities of the state would do well to think of launching some pilot projects on issues relating to climatic change, particularly in view of J-K having three distinct agro-climatic zones.

Sharing her experiences with the Governor about her participation in the Durban Conference, Shreya said that she participated in group discussions, youth meets and several other events associated with the Conference.