Amid the persisting water insecurity in Manipur, Social Welfare Minister Heikham Dingo has called upon the people of the state to support afforestation and stop deforestation to restore the state's ecology and solve the water scarcity problem faced by people in the hills and valley both.
"Due to the ecological imbalance in the last few years, people of not only the Imphal area but also those staying in the hills have been facing drinking water issues," Social Welfare Minister Heikham Dingo said while addressing the inauguration of TSNYTK playground held at Singda Kadangband Part I on Saturday.
The minister said Manipur has been facing gradual impact of mass deforestation in hill areas and valley areas in the last few years.
Dingo said the initiatives of Chief Minister N Biren Singh on poppy destruction under ‘War on Drugs’ campaign is not just to eradicate drugs from the state but to protect the ecological balance in the state.
Destruction of poppy cultivation will be one of the most effective solutions to restore the degrading ecological imbalance in Manipur, said the social welfare minister.
Landslides and mudslides in various areas of hill districts are due to mass deforestation in hills and people should be aware of the impact of deforestation in hill districts, he added.
Highlighting an example on the impact of ecological imbalance, Dingo said this year’s water level in Singda Dam could be the lowest as compared with previous years.
Maintaining and regaining ecological balance would be one of the best contributions of the present generation to the future generation, he said.
The minister also attended a closing ceremony of Sekmai Constituency U-15 Boys’ 9Aside Football tournament at KYC (North) Khurkhul, Imphal West as chief guest.
