LAHORE, June 26: Nobel-winning IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) chair Dr Rajendra K. Pachauri has said the South Asian countries should take up climate change as a common issue and take measures to ward off its impact.

“If the climate change management is not taken up immediately as a priority, the sufferings of people in South Asia will amplify,” he observed.

Dr Pachauri was speaking at an open discussion on “Climate Change in South Asia – Risk Vulnerability and Disaster”, hosted by the Lahore University of Management Sciences in collaboration with the LEAD Pakistan on Tuesday.

LUMS Vice-Chancellor Dr Adil Najam moderated the discussion which was also participated in by LEAD Pakistan CEO Ali Tauqeer Sheikh.

Dr Pachauri, who is also chancellor of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), said disasters and extreme events were increasing across the globe and there was a dire need to develop capacity to cope with such situations. He said the climate change would ferociously impact South Asian countries and called for developing capacity, creating collaborations and develop common infrastructure to take on the impacts on scientific lines.

Dr Pachauri said the developed countries had showed decreasing intention over the years regarding action to be taken against climate change impacts. Therefore, he said, it was up to the South Asian countries to take up the responsibility.

He also stressed that the South Asian countries should first understand the impacts of climate change by collaborating on scientific grounds.

“Once we will realise where we should be together, then we will be much stronger to deal with the climate change impact,” he said, warning “otherwise, this region is very much vulnerable to climate change impacts.”

Dr Pachauri said the government, civil society and businesses and industry must enter into collaborative efforts. He said the governments must promulgate laws and identify issues, while the civil society should play its role of creating awareness and motivating individuals to work towards developing green environment.

Similarly, he said, the businesses and industry would also be required to meet the environment protection laws and enhance their productivity. “It is up to us to take the heat or step out of the kitchen,” he said. He said the IPCC did not advise on managing climate change issues and instead draw up strategies that could be picked up by any government or organisation.