ISLAMABAD, Nov 24: Speakers at an international conference on impact of weather and climate on society affairs here on Thursday sketched a grim picture of the future of South Asia where the frequency of natural calamities would increase. “Climate change is threatening to push man to the brink of extinction,” said Federal Minister for Science and Technology Chaudhry Nauraiz Shakoor Khan in his inaugural address.

Comsats Institute of Information Technology organized the conference, which will conclude on Saturday.

The minister said environmental degradation was resulting in the chaotic weather patterns all around the world. It is a big challenge for scientists to create awareness of this critical issue, which could help mitigate the wrongs of earlier generations.

He expressed the hope that some positive suggestions would come from the deliberations of the conference.

Postgraduate scientist at the National Centre for Atmospheric Research, USA, Dr Asim Zia, said in the recent years South Asia had been particularly vulnerable to natural calamities and disasters and an institutional mechanism for the study of such natural phenomena was needed.

He said scientific data pointed towards a destructive future of South Asia in terms of floods, windstorms and droughts.

He advocated a pro-active approach to save the poor from the risks of adverse weather.

He said the conference would discuss ways and means to develop emergency management institutions specific to the needs of growing population inn the region.