Comment
Ashraf Ansari
Prime Minister Imran has inaugurated ‘Spring Tree Planting’ drive from Kundian Forest Area in Mianwali district. His choice of place for the drive is meaningful. Kundian Forest Area awas denuded of trees over the years like many such areas of the country as well as Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan. The denuded forest areas in our country are as vast as tens of thousands of acres. Forest departments control these areas. These departments must be moved out of lethargy to cover their respective areas with plantations. The forest officials should come out of their offices to the job in the field. There should be some sort of mechanism to monitor their field work.
This spring season’s tree planting drive should serve as a milestone of ‘Green, Clean Pakistan’ campaign. This campaign may not be season bound; it should be continued throughout the year, not only this years but all years. Experts say Pakistan can achieve ten percent forest cover in not less than 20 years if the campaigns continue throughout the years. Currently Pakistan’s forest covered area is below 5 percent.
Seasonal tree planting campaigns over the past 50 years have not been instrumental in promoting tree growing culture in the country. These campaigns mainly show-cased photo sessions of the officials seen planting saplings to start the drives. Forest officials lacked motivation to undertake large scale plantations. Civil society was not engaged by the forest departments to work together with missionary zeal. Even the prime minister’s campaign for a green and clean Pakistan has not been taken seriously by our forest departments and the civil society. The prime minister needs to evolve a strategy to ensure success of his campaign for green, clean Pakistan.
All institutions in both public and private sectors be directed to plant trees in vacant lands available to them: Government offices, universities. Colleges, schools, local bodies and industrial units. That would mean the communities should be mobilized to plant trees under the guidance of forest experts. Intelligent choice has to be made while deciding what to plant. For example Potohar region is suitable for planting of olive shrubs. Emphasis should be on planting fruit tress so that the country could export good quantities of fruits to foreign countries. Pakistan is one of the most vulnerable countries in respect of climate change perils. Trees serve as fighters to defeat chances of such perils. What we need is to plant trees on war-footing. The government may adopt a policy to ensure success of Green, Clean Pakistan. The nation has to develop a culture of planting trees. How ironic it is that we do not line our roads and railways with forests. We do not grow suitable trees around our airports. Islamabad’s new airport is one glaring example of our lack of insight, where housing settlements have been allowed to mushroom.
