MANSEHRA: Forest owners of Upper and Lower Kohistan districts of Hazara division on Monday took to the streets and blocked the Karakoram Highway for several hours against ban on cutting of trees.

“We want to communicate to the government that if the ban on cutting of trees is not lifted, we would be left with no option but to cultivate poppy and block KKH for an indefinite period from the next Friday,” warned Fazal Haq, a forest owner, while speaking to the protesters in Dassu.

The protesters chanted anti-government slogans and kept the KKH blocked for hours in scorching heat, causing agony for to the commuters travelling between Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Many passengers also reportedly fell unconscious because of sizzling heat.

Speaking on occasion, Mr Haq said that because of the ban they had been facing financial crunch. Another forest owner, Malik Surnzeb, said it was ironical that they even couldn’t transport their own windfall trees and permitted timber to the market.

“We want government to lift ban imposed some two decades ago as forests are our only source of income since centuries,” said Mr Surnzeb.On the occasion, a 40-member committee was constituted to take up the issue with the provincial and federal governments.

RECONSTRUCTION PROJECTS: Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Mohammad Yousuf on Monday said the government had released Rs5 billion for early completion of projects in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Azad Kashmir, which were suspended on account of funds shortage.

“Government has been giving due importance to completing projects destroyed in the October 2005 earthquake in KP and AJK, and has for the purpose released an amount of Rs5 billion to Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority for clearing the liabilities,” said Mr Yousuf while speaking at a function at the Hazara University.

He also visited the under-construction blocks at the varsity, and said that Rs650 million had been released by the Turkish government for completing the project continuing for several years. The minister said that Erra should also expand covering area of its rainwater harvesting programme from nine union councils of Mansehra to the entire district.

Published in Dawn, June 17th, 2014