Boost photosynthesis to mitigate climate change woes: Expert

DEHRADUN: Dr Vir Singh, Director of the Department of Environmental Science in the prestigious GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, says fortification of photosynthesis is the key to mitigate the climate change challenge.

Dr Vir Singh

Jotirmay Thapliyal

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, September 1

Dr Vir Singh, Director of the Department of Environmental Science in the prestigious GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, says fortification of photosynthesis is the key to mitigate the climate change challenge.

Dr Vir Singh, while talking to The Tribune, said increasing concentration of the carbon dioxide in the troposphere was the main reason behind rising temperature. He has more than 30 years of research experience in the field of agro-ecology, environmental science and animal sciences in various capacities at the GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology.

He says the average temperature in Himalayas has risen by 1 degree Celsius which is a matter of concern. Rising temperatures have serious ramifications on the Himalayas. “Trees and other vegetation start reducing as you go higher. Thus any loss of species here has more serious consequences than a species lost in plains,” he pointed out.

“The visible signs of climate change in the region have been revealed by change in flowering pattern and invasion of some weeds into newer areas. I still remember when I was serving on Ranichauri campus of Pantnagar University way back in 1984, flowering at Rhododendron used to take place in May and June. Now, it takes place as early as February, which is one of glaring visible signs of climate change,” he said.

The expert says that even weeds like Parthenium and Lantana that were once limited to plains have reached hilly areas. Development of alternative sources of energy which are renewable and inexhaustible is vital for climate change mitigation.

Underlining the importance of photosynthesis, Dr Vir Singh says it fixes carbon dioxide into life and regulates carbon and oxygen cycles. It is photosynthesis that locks carbon into ecosystems and thus its fortification is important to arrest the rise in temperature.

Dr Vir Singh did his PhD in Animal Nutrition from the GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology in 1985. Apart from being MSc in Animal Nutrition, he is also MSc in Botany. In 2007, he was also awarded D Phil on Studies on the Rangeland Management of Selected Areas in Kumaun Himalaya.

He has been a Research Fellow at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Kathmandu, Nepal from 1996-97. He holds a Diploma in Environmental Management from Galilee College, Israel. A versatile personality, Dr Vir Singh, besides being from a science background, also got MA (sociology) degree from Indira Gandhi National Open University in 2007. He is a versatile writer and is also editor-in-chief of two monthly magazines published by the university-Indian Farmers Digest and Kisan Bharati (Hindi) since June 28, 2013.