GEP to be introduced in U`khand next year

Dehradun: Uttarakhand will soon become the first state in the country to introduce the concept of Gross Environment Product on the lines of GDP as a yardstick to measure environmental growth.

"GEP will be brought into force in Uttarakhand next year making the state the first in the country to introduce the measure," noted environmentalist Padmashree Anil Prakash Joshi told reporters here. "Just as the GDP indicates the economic growth of a state, the GEP will be an index of its environmental growth," he said. The decision to introduce GEP was taken at a meeting of Uttarakhand Environment Index Development Committee held recently in Delhi, Joshi, who attended the meet, said on his retrun here yesterday. Joshi, who had long been advocating introduction of the measure, said it would lead to balanced development in which environmental conservation and economic growth will go hand in hand. Terming GEP as the need of the hour, the environmentalist said the natural resources are facing massive depletion due to their mindless exploitaion over the years. Citing instances of cutting of trees and deforestation in the name of development, he said a far sighted approach alone can create a balance between human activities and nature. PTI