PESHAWAR: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chairman Imran Khan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak flew in two helicopters to Havelian in Abbottabad district to plant a sapling and launch the plantation campaign, an opposition MPA said on Thursday.

“They spent a million rupees by flying in two choppers to Havelian and planted a sapling of just Rs200,” said Sardar Aurangzeb Nalotha, an MPA of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz from Abbottabad district.

Speaking on a point in the provincial assembly on Thursday, the opposition member said that the PTI-led coalition government on the one hand was making tall claims about austerity, on the other the party chairman and chief minister were spending money extravagantly.

“Chairman Imran Khan and Chief Minister Pervez Khattak came to Havelian in two separate helicopters where they spent just 10 minutes to plant a sapling. Is that austerity,” he asked the chair. The lawmaker claimed that Rs1 million were spent on the launching ceremony of the drive.

Parliamentary secretary for environment Fazal Elahi did not contradict the statement of the opposition member. He, however, said that thousands of saplings were planted in the area on that day. He warned that he would expose lavish lifestyle of the PML-N leaders if opposition benches did not stop propaganda against his party leaders.

Must Read

Ukraine, Nato and the future of Europe

Ukraine, Nato and the future of Europe

The spectacle of the verbal spat between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Vlodomyr Zelensky in the Oval Office was stark evidence of a tectonic shift in longstanding US foreign policy on Ukraine, Russia, Europe and Nato.

Opinion

Editorial

After the review
Updated 16 Mar, 2025

After the review

Should prepare economy for durable growth by attracting foreign private investments to boost productivity and exports.
Embracing crypto
16 Mar, 2025

Embracing crypto

IT seems a little prod was all it took for Pakistan to finally ‘embrace the future’. The Pakistan Crypto Council...
Fault lines
16 Mar, 2025

Fault lines

IT was a distressing spectacle, though a sadly predictable one. As the National Assembly took up for discussion the...
Revised solar policy
Updated 15 Mar, 2025

Revised solar policy

Criticism policy revisions misplaced as these will increase payback periods for consumers with oversized solar systems.
Toxic prejudice
15 Mar, 2025

Toxic prejudice

WITH far-right movements on the march across the world, it is no surprise that anti-Muslim bias is witnessing high...
Children in jails
15 Mar, 2025

Children in jails

PAKISTAN’S children in prison have often been treated like adult criminals. The Sindh government’s programme to...