Union environment minister Harsh Vardhan has said a joint working group of officers of the ministries and departments headed by him will be formed to encourage officials and experts to work together on issues of national importance.
Vardhan, who also holds the science and technology as well as the earth sciences portfolios, took over the environment ministry after the death of former minister Madhav Dave in May 2017. He has been pushing for greater collaboration among his departments and ministries, especially on the issue of air pollution.
The secretariat for the group will be based in the environment ministry and include representatives from the earth science ministry and the three departments under the science ministry: department of science and technology (DST), department of biotechnology (DBT) and the department of scientific and industrial research (DSIR).
The minister underlined the fact that the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research, DST, DBT and MOES have excellent research capabilities and the environment ministry could take advantage of this. He called on officials to work towards getting results in the coming year.
“This will help provide technology and scientific inputs for policy formulation,” Ashutosh Sharma, secretary of the department of science and technology, said.
{{/usCountry}}“This will help provide technology and scientific inputs for policy formulation,” Ashutosh Sharma, secretary of the department of science and technology, said.
{{/usCountry}}Sharma suggested that cooperation in the areas of air pollution, climate change mitigation and waste management would prove fruitful.
The working group will meet every month and a ministry-level meeting will be held quarterly.