RAWALPINDI, Sept 9: Federal Minister for Industries and Production Liaquat Ali Jatoi has underlined the need for keeping the environment healthy and clean to avoid potential health hazards.

He said this while speaking at the concluding session of a two-day short course on ‘recent advancements in air pollution monitoring and control’ here on Tuesday. The workshop was held at the Institute of Environmental Science and Engineering, a constituent of the National University of Sciences and Technology.

The minister said the environment in Pakistan was under great stress, mainly due to rapid industrialization, high consumption of fossil fuels, and increase in population. The country, he said, is confronted with a number of air pollution problems.

The gaseous pollutants like sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide etc., are not only affecting the human beings but also flora and fauna, and climate.

He observed that motor vehicles were producing 90 per cent of total emission of pollutants in cities, and air pollution was a major cause for the spread of infectious diseases. Toxic air affects the respiratory system, transmits allergens and spreads cancer on large scale. It causes skin diseases and has an overall adverse effect on human body, he added.

The federal minister said Pakistan, being a signatory to the international protocols and a member of UNDP, UNEP, UNIDO and WHO, was obliged to pay attention towards air pollution control and cleaner environment. He stressed the need for creating awareness about air pollution and latest developments and techniques to counter the menace.

The minister asked Nust to send the recommendations of the short course to his ministry for implementation in the industrial sector.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr M. Ashraf Gondal, a guest scholar, said he had visited many environmental laboratories established at the universities in Germany, Italy, Australia and the US. He also claimed to have developed advanced techniques in air pollution monitoring at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia.

He stressed the need for establishing proper air quality monitoring system at various industrial complexes and the city centres.

He added that modern techniques should be developed by sharing the resources of different government agencies, universities and private sector to overcome the alarming situation in the country.

Earlier, in his welcoming remarks, principal of the Institute Dr M. Anwar Baig informed the course participants that breathing clean air was everybody’s right. He added that it was more important and sacrosanct than one’s fundamental right to practice any profession or to carry out any trade or to establish an industry that might pollute air. Monitoring of air pollutants is important to control the situation.

In the end, the minister distributed certificates among the participants of the course.