Journalist-parliamentarian M P Veerendrakumar on Thursday pitched for preserving environment, saying for the existence of humans, the nature has to exist.
Addressing a gathering here at the release of his book "Himalayan Odyssey" by Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, he said no one knows whether rivers like Ganga and Yamuna would last and whether there would be oxygen to breathe.
"For our existence, nature has to exist," he said.
"Himalayan Odyssey" is the English version of original "Haimavathabhuvil" published in Malayalam in 2007 and authored by the Rajya Sabha member and Chairman-Managing Director of the Mathrubhumi Printing & Publishing Company Ltd.
The book has musings on the fragile environment, the disaster potential of dams, on the emergent water crisis and waste disposal.
The original version has won several prestigious awards, including one given by the Kendra Sahitya Akademi and the Moortidevi Award, instituted by Bharatiya Jnanpith.
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In his address, Naidu said from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, India has many scenic and pilgrimage destinations with relevance to Indian history, culture, mythology and heritage.
"There is a great scope and need to develop tourist circuits on specific themes to attract the tourists having special interest in visiting such places ... While the central and state governments are doing their bit to develop tourist spots and promote tourism, I would like to suggest to the corporate sector to supplement the efforts of the governments," he said.
Referring to the book, Naidu said it talks of the spiritual evolution of our heritage from the Himalaya deva-bhumi to the veda-bhumi of the banks of Nila; meditation on Krishna, the subtle concepts of Radhakrishna and Raslila and their deep-rooted hold on the native imagination and the poetic charm of Gita Govinda by Jayadeva.
"Beginning with the author's journey to the Himalayas from Delhi in October 2003, it recounts his long association with the capital and talks of the mythical origins of Indraprastha and the hoary legend of Kurukshetra," he pointed out.
Tracing the historic events that unfolded on the banks of the Yamuna from the times of the Delhi Sultanate to the making of imperial Lutyens Delhi, it touches on the Hindu-Mughal-Islamic, Buddhist and Jain influences on the eclectic architecture, he said.