PM Khan wants to introduce climate change courses in schools
Trees to be planted in Islamabad, Lahore
Special courses will be introduced across Pakistan to teach students the importance of forests and trees and the dangers of climate change, Prime Minister Imran Khan said.
Speaking to the media at the inauguration ceremony of the spring plantation drive in Islamabad, he warned that global warming and greenhouse gas emissions pose huge threats to the country. "Unfortunately, Pakistan is among the top 10 countries at threat from climate change."
Forests and trees are the need of the hour, they are the need of our future generations and this is the time to take action, the premier said.
He pointed out that the danger Pakistan is facing from deforestation is evident in Lahore. "As a child, I grew up in Lahore. It was called the garden city at that time." According to research, almost 70% of trees in the walled city have been cut, the prime minister revealed, adding that pollution in cities such as Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar are very dangerous for children and the elderly. "The pollution in these cities reduces the average life span of a person by 11 years."
For this purpose, the government has identified 50 spots in Lahore and 20 in Islamabad for planting trees. "We have adopted Japan's Miyawaki technique through which forests grow faster," the PM said.
This means that the forests that took 30 years will now grow in 10 years.
The premier urged young people to take part in the government's 10 Billion Tree Tsunami project. "The only thing a government can do is provide funds but the implementation lies in your hands."
In the upcoming days, schools across the country will be given a target of trees to plant and they will be responsible for taking care of that tree as well.
The premier added that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's tree plantation project was appreciated by international agencies such as WWF and it's time that the trajectory follows in other parts of the country as well.
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