CM directs plantation of two forests near Karachi and Hyderabad

One million mangroves to be planted in March, says forest secretary

KARACHI: Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has directed the forest department to develop two separate blocks of forests, each spreading over 10,000 acres near Karachi and Hyderabad to help control environmental pollution.

The CM issued these directives on Friday while presiding over a meeting of the forest department at CM House. The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Rizwan Memon, Principal Secretary to CM Sohail Rajput, Forest and Wildlife Secretary Asif Hyder Shah, chief conservators and other concerned officers.

Vast lands of the forest department were lying barren near Karachi and Hyderabad, the CM maintained. "Both cities are facing environmental pollution, therefore two separate blocks of forest may be developed near them," he said, adding that each block should be spread over an area of 10,000 acres and watered through a drip irrigation system.

Giving a presentation to the CM, the forest secretary said the total forest land in the province comprised around 10% of its surface area. The forests included mangroves, riverine forests, rangelands and irrigated plantations. According to the forest secretary, irrigated plantations covered an area of 202,622 acres in the province, while riverine forests, rangelands and mangroves spread over 595,511 acres, 1.13 million acres and 1.5 million acres respectively.



The forest secretary informed the meeting that mangroves had been planted over an area of 175,000 acres in the province during the last five years. "We set the Guinness World Record of planting the most mangrove trees in a single day in 2009 and again set a new record in 2013," he said. The CM gave the forest department a new target of planting one million mangroves in March. "I will personally launch the drive on March 23," Shah said.

The CM was also informed that around 100 million seeds had been dispersed for planting riverine forests over 5,000 acres in Sindh. The forest department had also carried out linear planation alongside roads and canals spreading over 400 kilometres, the meeting was told.

The CM directed the forest secretary to issue notices to land occupiers who had violated lease conditions. He also directed to remove encroachments from the forest land in the province.