Sizzling heat, growing hope: KP nurseries race to raise 1.4 million saplings for Independence Day plantation drive

PESHAWAR, Jul 03 (APP): Under the scorching summer sun in Peshawar, where temperatures soar and the heat is relentless, Abdul Qadar wraps a wet towel around his head and continues watering thousands of young saplings at his two kanals nursery in Tarnab, on the outskirts of provincial capital on main GT Road.

For progressive plant sellers, this was more than just another busy pre-moon season and a golden opportunity to significantly contribute to a greener Pakistan while earning a livelihood in a dignified manner for his family.

“We have received large orders for the Independence Day plantation campaign,” Qadar (54) said with a smile as his son and three labourers hurriedly prepared saplings for delivery. “We have even hired extra workers because everyone wants plants before August 14 for the whopping afforestation campaign that will be marked in all 38 districts of Khyber Pakthunkhwa including seven merged tribal districts.”

Tarnab, known as one of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s largest hubs for flowers and nursery plants, has become a hive of plants activity as growers work against the clock to help meet the provincial government’s ambitious target of planting 1.4 million saplings on upcoming Pakistan’s Independence Day that would be celebrated with national enthusiasm.

For hundreds of nursery owners, the campaign has brought welcome business during monsoon plantation season. For environmentalists, it represented another step in restoring forests and combating climate change while for many ornamental plants enhanced houses beauty.

However, Qadar expressed worries of financial losses in case of death of plants or unsold during monsoon, urging KP Govt to provide free interest loans to help support thousands of plants sellers in KP.

Muhammad Ibrahim Khan, Deputy Director of Trees Afforestation Programme, said both the KP government and private nurseries would join hands to achieve the whopping target with assistance of different stakeholders.

“Government departments, educational institutions, village development committees, farmers, NGOs, private organizations and the general public will all participate in the plantation drive,” he said.

He recalled that more than one million saplings were successfully planted across over 250 locations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the Pakistan Day plantation campaign on March 23 this year. He said farmers and the general public would be encouraged to upload their plantation videos on the KP Forest department dashboard.

According to Ibrahim, Pakistan was among the 10 countries highly vulnerable to climate change where glaciers in Hamaliya regions especially in Gilgit Baltistan and Chitral were at risk due to rising temperature and GOLF.

He said Pakistan was blessed with more than 200 indigenous tree species and nine distinct forest ecosystems, making it one of the most ecologically diverse countries in South Asia.

From the towering deodar forests of the Himalayas, Karakoram and Hindukush to the mangroves of Karachi and Gwadar and the ancient juniper forests of Ziarat, the country’s native trees play a vital role in producing oxygen, absorbing carbon dioxide, reducing pollution and improving rainfall patterns. Besides climate change, he said mangroves forests and Indus dolphin were under heightening threat due to illegal abeyance of Indus Water Treaty by India.

He said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa alone had around 26.6 percent forest cover, with areas such as Galiyat, Kaghan, Naran, Kalam and Malam Jabba receiving substantial monsoon rainfall because of their dense forests.

Ibrahim said vast land in merged tribal districts were available that could be used for plantation of native trees during the upcoming afforestration campaigns.

Environmental experts said restoring native species such as Shisham, Siris, Peepal, Neem, Kikar, Deodar, Kail and Walnut was essential for improving air quality and strengthening resilience against climate change and rising heat.

Once famous for its thick forests, the Peshawar Valley has gradually lost much of its green cover because of rapid urbanisation, expanding housing schemes and unchecked development.

Historical accounts even described a very different landscape. In his memoir Tuzk-e-Babri, Mughal Emperor Zaheer-ud-Din Babar mentioned hunting a lion on the outskirts of Peshawar, reflecting the dense forests that once existed there.

Similarly, during the reign of Sher Shah Suri, thousands of Shisham trees were planted along the historic Grand Trunk Road. Today, many of those majestic trees have disappeared, while canals and roadsides that once remained shaded were dotted with withered trunks. Wildlife has also suffered, with birds such as cranes and Houbara bustards becoming increasingly rare around Peshawar.

Environmental degradation has also worsened the city’s air quality due to encroachment in Mughal era parks and gardens such as Wazir Bagh and Shahi Bagh where plastic pollution overshadows its natural greenery.

Officials said particulate matter (PM2.5) levels in Peshawar frequently exceed the National Environmental Quality Standards, exposing residents to respiratory illnesses, heart disease, strokes and other chronic health conditions.

“Large canopy trees are natural air filters,” Ibrahim explained. “They absorb carbon dioxide and harmful pollutants while producing oxygen and helping regulate temperatures.” He said that one healthy mature tree could provide enough oxygen for two to four people, highlighting the importance of expanding native forests.

Professor Dr Salimur Rehman, former chairman Environmental Science Department at University of Peshawar stressed that successful plantation campaigns required more than simply planting millions of saplings but proper care and watering.

“Many plantations fail because the wrong species are planted in unsuitable climates or because proper care is not provided after planting,” he said. He urged authorities to prioritise indigenous tree species over exotic varieties that consume excessive groundwater and were less suited to local ecosystems.

Back in Tarnab, however, such long-term debates momentarily gave way to the urgency of the present keeping in view of the present day environmental challenges.

Rows upon rows of tender saplings sway gently under the summer breeze as workers prepare them for transportation across the province. For Abdul Qadar, every plant leaving his nursery carried more than commercial value. “It gives us happiness to know these trees will provide shade, clean air, enhance rain prospects and a better future for our children,” he said.

As Khyber Pakhtunkhwa prepared to celebrate Pakistan’s 79th Independence Day with one of its largest plantation campaigns, thousands of nursery workers, forest officials, volunteers and ordinary citizens were united by a shared belief that every sapling planted today was an investment in a greener, healthier and more climate-resilient Pakistan.