PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak on Wednesday said that under the ‘green and clean Khyber Pakhtunkhwa plan’ the provincial government had banned cutting of trees to increase forest cover in the province.

He said that the plan had been launched to promote environmental tourism and boost energy resources.

He expressed these views while speaking at a jirga of the members of provincial assembly and forest owners from Hazara and Malakand regions here on Wednesday, according to a handout.

Minister for Irrigation Mehmood Khan, Advisors to CM Rafaqatullah Babar, Parliamentary Secretary Environment Fazal Elahi, Secretary Environment Dr Hammad Owais Agha and officials of concerned departments were in attendance.

Mr Khattak said that under the plan the forests owners would get higher profits for protecting trees.

To a demand for allowing cutting of old dead trees, the chief minister said that in past this relaxation was misused. However, on the appeal of legislators he constituted a committee comprising public representatives and experts of both the regions to furnish facts-based recommendations in that regard.

The chief minister said that Green Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Plan envisaged plantation of two billion saplings through involvement of youth, students and representatives of other walks of life over the next five years, afforestation on an additional 30,000 acres of barren land, streamlining spring and monsoon tree plantation drives, prevention of cutting and smuggling of forests under forest conservation plan, provision of mark-up free loans to youth under green credit scheme, doubling of the number of existing national parks, establishment of national and safari parks at district level and increase in number and species of the wildlife.

He said that other schemes to be initiated under the programme included setting up of small and large hydel and solar power stations, launching zero-carbon and solar tube-well schemes, initiating mass transit in Peshawar city and introducing traffic control system.

Mr Khattak said that such schemes were also launched in the past, but were left incomplete on excuses of shortage of funds, thus depriving people of their benefits. “But now, it will be ensured that funds didn’t go to the pockets of rulers and utilised for the timely and quality completion of important projects. Besides, there would be no excuse of scarcity of funds at any phase,” said the chief minister.

He said that funds for the project would be arranged from both the domestic and foreign financial institutions.

Quoting the example of India where extra funds were given to the states having large forest cover, he said that the federal government should allocate funds in the NFC award on the same pattern.

Mr Khattak said that it was in the interest of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to have increased forest cover as it provided clean environment.

The chief minister hoped that by implementing Green Khyber Pakhtunkhwa plan the illegal smuggling of timber would be stopped completely.

Published in Dawn, May 15th, 2014