K-P forms committee to amend forest law
K-POGCL chief fired; Chitral divided into two districts
PHOTO: REUTERS
PESHAWAR:
The provincial cabinet on Thursday decided to constitute a committee which will be responsible for amending the Forest Act 2002 so that construction can take place in protected forest areas.
The province’s apex decision-making body also decided to bifurcate the Chitral district apart from firing the head of the provincial oil and gas regulator.
The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa cabinet met on Thursday with provincial minister Shaukat Yousafzai briefing the media afterwards.
Yousafzai said that the four-member committee to propose amendments in the Forest Act 2002 will be headed by senior Tourism Minister Atif Khan and would include ministers for Law Sultan Mohammad Khan, Finance Taimur Saleem Jhagra and Mines Dr Amjad Ali.
Curiously, the committee does not include K-P Forest Minister Syed Muhammad Ishtiaq.
Amendments to the Forest Act 2002 have been under discussion for over a month with sources suggesting that the mines and minerals and the tourism departments keen on having Section 33 of the law amended. The amendment would remove protections provided to barren and subsistence (guzara) forests in the province and allow such land to be used for commercial purposes.
K-P Mineral Development Minister Dr Ali stated last month that owing to the strict forest law, “precious minerals are lying unexplored and unutilized.”
He had clarified that they want only protections for barren lands falling under guzara forest to be removed so that this land can be utilised.
The issue was raised in the cabinet meeting through an item in the agenda relating to the Swat District Council which is constructing a track in the Shah Dheri area. However, the presence of a few protected trees in the path of the track was hindering its construction.
Hence a need was cited to amend the law.
Chitral bifurcation
The provincial government also decided to create a new ‘Upper’ Chitral district by carving it out of existing Chitral district.
This would make it the 35th district of the province after the seven tribal agencies were added as districts earlier this year.
K-POGCL chief fired
The provincial cabinet also decided to terminate the services of K-P Oil Gas Company Limited (KPOGCL) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Raziuddin.
While a notification for his dismissal was issued by the K-P Energy and Power Department, Yousafzai made no attempt to explain the decision.
The cabinet also decided to remove a condition of acquiring no objection certificates (NOC) for setting-up industries in the province for new investors.
Laws amended
Amendments to the K-P Child Protection and Welfare Rules and K-P Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Bill 2018, were also approved.
“The [domestic violence] bill has been redrafted in light of recommendations from the Council Islamic Ideology and it got the approval of the cabinet and will now be tabled in the assembly for legislation,” Yousafzai said.
Regarding amendments in the child protection rules, he said that the experience requirement for chief protection officer had been set at 15 to 10 years and that women would be preferred for the job.
The cabinet also decided to give control of the K-P Revenue Authority (KPRA) to the K-P Finance Department. The authority was previously overseen by the K-P Excise and Taxation Department.
The provincial government also decided to plant a billion trees in the province over the next five years at a cost of Rs27 billion. Yousafzai told that federal government would provide half of the money for the project.
According to Yousafzai, the cabinet also agreed to auction 99 non-custom paid vehicles in the possession of the various provincial government departments.
A Rs4.8 billion package for development in the newly merged tribal districts was also approved.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 9th, 2018.
The provincial cabinet on Thursday decided to constitute a committee which will be responsible for amending the Forest Act 2002 so that construction can take place in protected forest areas.
The province’s apex decision-making body also decided to bifurcate the Chitral district apart from firing the head of the provincial oil and gas regulator.
The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa cabinet met on Thursday with provincial minister Shaukat Yousafzai briefing the media afterwards.
Yousafzai said that the four-member committee to propose amendments in the Forest Act 2002 will be headed by senior Tourism Minister Atif Khan and would include ministers for Law Sultan Mohammad Khan, Finance Taimur Saleem Jhagra and Mines Dr Amjad Ali.
Curiously, the committee does not include K-P Forest Minister Syed Muhammad Ishtiaq.
Amendments to the Forest Act 2002 have been under discussion for over a month with sources suggesting that the mines and minerals and the tourism departments keen on having Section 33 of the law amended. The amendment would remove protections provided to barren and subsistence (guzara) forests in the province and allow such land to be used for commercial purposes.
K-P Mineral Development Minister Dr Ali stated last month that owing to the strict forest law, “precious minerals are lying unexplored and unutilized.”
He had clarified that they want only protections for barren lands falling under guzara forest to be removed so that this land can be utilised.
The issue was raised in the cabinet meeting through an item in the agenda relating to the Swat District Council which is constructing a track in the Shah Dheri area. However, the presence of a few protected trees in the path of the track was hindering its construction.
Hence a need was cited to amend the law.
Chitral bifurcation
The provincial government also decided to create a new ‘Upper’ Chitral district by carving it out of existing Chitral district.
This would make it the 35th district of the province after the seven tribal agencies were added as districts earlier this year.
K-POGCL chief fired
The provincial cabinet also decided to terminate the services of K-P Oil Gas Company Limited (KPOGCL) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Raziuddin.
While a notification for his dismissal was issued by the K-P Energy and Power Department, Yousafzai made no attempt to explain the decision.
The cabinet also decided to remove a condition of acquiring no objection certificates (NOC) for setting-up industries in the province for new investors.
Laws amended
Amendments to the K-P Child Protection and Welfare Rules and K-P Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Bill 2018, were also approved.
“The [domestic violence] bill has been redrafted in light of recommendations from the Council Islamic Ideology and it got the approval of the cabinet and will now be tabled in the assembly for legislation,” Yousafzai said.
Regarding amendments in the child protection rules, he said that the experience requirement for chief protection officer had been set at 15 to 10 years and that women would be preferred for the job.
The cabinet also decided to give control of the K-P Revenue Authority (KPRA) to the K-P Finance Department. The authority was previously overseen by the K-P Excise and Taxation Department.
The provincial government also decided to plant a billion trees in the province over the next five years at a cost of Rs27 billion. Yousafzai told that federal government would provide half of the money for the project.
According to Yousafzai, the cabinet also agreed to auction 99 non-custom paid vehicles in the possession of the various provincial government departments.
A Rs4.8 billion package for development in the newly merged tribal districts was also approved.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 9th, 2018.