VASCO: Dr M Ravichandran, Secretary of the Ministry of Earth Sciences stated that global warming in the polar regions four times faster and climate changes were a cause of concern.
Dr Ravichandran stated this at the inauguration of the four-day national conference on Polar Sciences organised at the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) at Headland-Sada, Mormugao
Speaking further, he said that climate change is happening everywhere especially in the polar region which is four times faster than the global average. He informed that last year in Antarctica, the temperature was minus 11.8 degree centigrade, which may be cold but it was 40 degrees higher than the usual climate thus indicating the extent of warming.
He said that Ministry of Earth Sciences and scientists are trying to understand the process and the reason for this and what could be the consequences of this global warming and climate change. Around two million people are dependent on the water tower in Himalayas, which is also depleting and is a cause of worry, he said.
Dr Ravichandran pointed out that the Antarctica Treaty will end in 2048 and it is unsure if the treaty will recontinue or collapse. If it collapses, then it will cause chaos as everybody will try to grab land in Antarctica, he said.
Director of NCPOR Dr Thamban Meloth, former Director of NCPOR Rasik Ravindra, Director of National Institute of Advanced Studies, Dr Shailesh Nayak, Dr P C Pandey, Dr S Rajan and Dr Vijay Kumar were also present.