The second meeting of the Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group of G20 will be inaugurated by Amitabh Kant, India’s sherpa to G-20, at Gandhinagar on March 27.
The three-day meeting will witness participation from 30 countries including China, Australia, Japan, Russia, and the United States.
Representatives from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), are expected to participate in this meeting.
On March 27, visitors will be taken on an excursion to Adalaj Stepwell, Sabarmati Siphon, and Sabarmati Riverfront. The Gujarat government will also host a gala dinner on the riverfront.
When asked if the visitors will be shown spots on the Sabarmati river where effluent gets discharged and pollutes the river, principal secretary (economic affairs) Mona Khandhar who gave details of the meeting said: “The schedule is pre-decided by the G20 Secretariat. The state government just facilitates and supports the event.” Sabarmati has been tagged as the second-most polluted river in India.
Asked why media persons are kept out of the technical sessions, Khandhar said that during the three days, the media will be briefed at the end of the day. Asked if the state government will take any action against conman Kiran Patel who is believed to have organised a private event under the banner of G20 at a five-star hotel in the state, the official said: “I have no knowledge about it and so cannot comment.”
‘Water Resource Management’ will be the overarching theme of the sessions that will be held during this three-day period. The technical sessions on climate-resilient infrastructure, groundwater management, resource efficiency and circular economy, and the proposed Gandhinagar Implementation Roadmap (GIR) on land restoration in correlation with Climate Change Mitigation will be held on March 28.
On March 29, technical sessions centered on oceans, the blue economy, and related areas will be held. On the last day, visiting delegates will also be taken to Dandi Kutir. The forest departments of the Centre and the state will present two pavilions based on themes of ‘Banni Grassland-Great Indian Bustard’ and ‘Project Lion-Project Dolphin-Project Elephant’.