KARACHI, Jan 7: Sindh Chief Minister Sardar Ali Mohammad Mahar on Tuesday underlined the need to upgrade the curriculum by incorporating the today’s concerns like environment in it.

He was speaking as chief guest at a workshop on “Environmental Education - A Strategy for Sustainability,” organised by the Progress Foundation, in collaboration with Sindh Departments of Education, Environment, Forest and the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency, at the Federation House.

“Our government is assigning top most priority to education, which is the right of every child of the country,” Mahar said, adding that if the children were made aware of the problems being created by environmental pollution, they will definitely be more responsible towards environment, when they grow up.

He said that the technological advancement too had its dark side which was becoming visible in the form of environmental pollution.

“This has made all of us think as to what went wrong and what is to be done to set the things right,” he observed.

The Chief Minister said that the environmental education was a tool to educate the people so that they should know how they were affecting the environment adversely, and how they could contribute to its protection.

He assured the participants of the workshop that the proposals would be considered by the provincial government on priority basis.

Speaking on the occasion, the Minister of State for Environment, Major Tahir Iqbal, said the government would observe a National Day for Cleanliness all over the country.

He said that If the houses and their surrounding area was kept clean, about 26 per cent of the pollution could be controlled.

He underlined the need to conserve energy resources for the use of coming generations.

Mr Tahir urged the industrialists to play their role in controlling pollution.

He said the industries should act according to the Environmental Act and for this, he said, the government would provide all out assistance to the industries.

He said donor agencies’ funds for environmental protection should be utilised judiciously.

Speaking on the occasion, the Sindh Secretary for Environment and Alternate Energy, Hashim Ali Leghari, said the provincial government was preparing environmental curriculum in consultation with the ministry of education. He said the department was working on provision of alternative energy resources, including wind and solar resources.

Wind and solar mills had been installed in villages around Karachi on experimental basis, he said, adding the National University of Science and Technology (NUST) had developed solar cookers, which were being tested.

Sindh Secretary for Forest and Wildlife, Shamsul Haq Memon, Sindh Health Secretary Amir Ali Barq, Director General, EPA, Shafeeq Khoso, Chairman of Foundation for Progress, Dr M.A. Wajid, and others also spoke on the occasion.—APP