Notes from Dr A P J Abdul Kalam,speech on World Environment Day

Here are a few notes from Dr A P J Abdul Kalam, Ex-president of India's speech on World Environment Day noted from PIB website:

1. Theme of the World Environment Day, 'Bio-diversity: Connecting with nature'. is a very important aspect of our ecological system.
2. Every life form, be it microscopic bacteria which help decompose dead plants and wood, to the colorful butterflies which help in pollination to the mighty mammals that are precariously balanced along the food chain. Each species has a special role to play on our planet.
3. India being classified as one of the 17 mega-diverse countries of the world has a important mission in maintaining and enhancing bio-diversity and conserving the environment.
4. India's 2.4% of the world land area, 8% of the total number of species, 10 distinct biodiversity zones, 12% of the world Pisces (fish) diversity and about 13.6% of world's bird species, 7th in the world as far as the species in animal husbandry and agriculture, 16 major groups of forest zones comprising 221 types, wetlands, the biodiversity can be our core strength for economic development, societal mission and environmental conservation.
5. Humanity over its history has used approximately 80,000 edible plants, of which only about 150 have been ever been cultivated on a large scale. Today, about 10-20 species provide 80-90% of the food requirements of the world. Most of the plants being used as a source of nutrition and food by the tribal areas of the nation are not known to the outside world.
6. Environment Ministry, may like to embark on a mission to collate and research the various forms of such traditional food varieties and promote rural enterprises, which would be vertically integrated and can export processed and value added traditional food as an exotic food product.
7. Defense Research and Development Organization's Field Research Laboratory in Leh who extracted and processed a little known Himalayan shrub Seabuckthorn. This fruit contains eight vitamins, 24 minerals, 18 amino acids and antioxidants and can be converting it into packaged juice.
8. Confluence of research, traditional wealth and entrepreneurship, an economic value can be established based on biodiversity.
9. As much as the 70% of the medicine are derived from the natural products today.
10. Around 20,000 plants species are believed to be used for medical purposes in the developing.
11. In India too, 95% of the prescriptions are plant based in the traditional India has 47,000 species of flowering and non-flowering plants representing 12% of the world's flora.
12. Research needs to be promoted in finding the medicinal value of this biodiversity wealth.
13. The traditional Indian Neem tree has been used as antiseptic, anti-fungal, anti-parasitic, anti-inflammatory and even as organic pesticides. Thus, biodiversity, when nurtured and researched can be used for concurrent economic advantage and societal welfare.
14. The Ministry of Environment and Forests can consider establishing such biodiversity – research and marketing centres, with global standards all across the nation. These can capitalized on the diverse floral wealth in the ten biodiversity zones of the nation and managed in a very entrepreneurial way.
15. Advantages for medical tourists include reduced costs, the availability of latest medical technologies and a growing compliance on international quality standards. With the tremendous medicinal wealth untapped in our forests, with the confluence of modern science and traditional and the progress of alternative therapies, Eco-Medico-Centers, which give the patients from all around the world, the unique mixture of advanced Indian medicinal treatments in an ambience of green clean environment in especially protected zones can be thought over.
16. The environment ministry can work with private industry, other government departments and young entrepreneurs to facilitate the creation of such ecologically and economically sustainable development missions in the forest and tribal locations of the nation.