Experts have shown concern over the rapid curtailment in forest area in the country from 1,50,000 square miles to 60,000 square miles. They also said that plantation would not only be beneficial for country’s environmental system but it would also reduce negative effects of global warming.
They were speaking at an inaugural ceremony of plantation campaign of local plants organised by University of Karachi’s Registrar Office in collaboration with KU Center of Excellence for Women Studies and WWF on the university’s premises.
KU’s Registrar and Professor Institute of Environmental Studies Dr Moazzam Ali Khan said that unplanned deforestation in the country had brought many negative impacts on the country’s environmental system due to which she was facing heavy rains, floods, earthquakes, and different natural disasters. He said forests in the country had been hacked to 60,000 square miles from 1,50,000 square miles. “The government must enforce strict ban on deforestation and take serious measures for ensuring adequate amount of forestation and plantation in the country,” he asserted. He further said that the KU’s vice chancellor had also issued special directives to the university’s all departments to participate in the plantation drive.
KU Prof Dr Khalid Iraqi said for making their society a healthy and environment-friendly, ‘our collective duty is to organise plantation campaigns which will benefit not only us but also the generations to come’. Forestation was imperative for reducing the negative effects of global warming, he said, adding that the WWF had granted 100 local plants to KU which was a great gift. The WWF was playing a vital role in making their environment clean and pollution-free.
