KARACHI, May 8: The environmental pollution is emerging as a serious problem in backdrop of the fact that a child lost his life and many other sustained burn wounds due to the dumping of industrial waste in open.

This was stated by the vice-chancellor of Karachi University, Prof (Dr) Pirzada Qasim while delivering presidential address at the decade celebrations of the Institute of Environmental Studies.

The vice-chancellor also spoke about the problem pertaining to the hospital waste and stressed that there was a need to devise special programmes for public awareness.

He appealed to the ex-students of the institute to come up with a programme on urgent basis for fostering knowledge among the masses and promoting awareness regarding environment.

Pirzada Qasim was of the view that a beginning in this respect should be made from various teaching departments of the university. He was of the view that our 20,000 students came from almost every nook and corner of the metropolis. If they were trained they could disseminate the knowledge among the people of their respective localities. This would help save the lives of the people who may fall victim to environmental degradation, he added.

Besides, he urged electronic media to help create awareness in this regard.

He asked the institute to continue its research on clean drinking water in collaboration with various organisations.

IES In charge Prof (Dr) Moazzam Ali gave presentation on the 10-year performance of his organisation.

The KU Science Faculty Dean Prof (Dr) Muhammad Qaiser also expressed his views on the occasion.

Later, the vice-chancellor distributed shields and certificates among the students who excelled in various disciplines. He also appreciated the services rendered by the institute during the past 10 years.—APP