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BATTAGRAM, Dec 24 (APP): Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Captain (R) Muhammad Safdar Wednesday has strongly criticized the indiscriminate and large-scale cutting of forests in Tehsil Allai of District Battagram, describing it as an unprecedented plunder of national wealth.
He expressed these views while talking to the media during his visit to the area. He witnessed distressing scenes of deforestation where forests worth billions and even trillions of rupees have been mercilessly felled, turning once-green mountains into barren and lifeless landscapes.
Captain (R) Muhammad Safdar stated that the destruction of forests was not limited to Battagram alone but had spread across the entire Hazara Division, including Abbottabad, Mansehra, Haripur, Torghar and Kohistan.
He alleged that despite tall claims made by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led government over the past decade regarding environmental protection and large-scale plantation drives, the ground realities presented a completely different picture.
According to him, mass deforestation is being carried out openly and in an organized manner, with the timber mafia operating freely and without fear of accountability. He further alleged that the Forest Department and the provincial government are equally responsible for this environmental destruction, either through negligence or active complicity. Vast forest areas, he said, have been cleared to such an extent that once-lush green regions of Hazara now resemble desolate plains.
Criticizing the ruling authorities, Captain Safdar remarked that the much-publicized “tsunami” had indeed proven to be a real one not of development, but of devastation sweeping away precious natural resources and causing irreversible damage to the environment, biodiversity and local livelihoods. He warned that continued deforestation would lead to severe consequences, including climate change impacts, water scarcity, landslides and loss of wildlife habitats.
He demanded an immediate halt to illegal logging, strict action against the timber mafia, and accountability of officials involved in facilitating the destruction of forests. He also called for an independent inquiry into deforestation across Hazara Division and urged the government to move beyond slogans and take practical measures to protect the region’s natural heritage.