KARACHI (HRNW): Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Karachi spokesperson Fauzia Siddiqui has called on the Sindh government to immediately launch a comprehensive and transparent afforestation campaign to plant at least 100,000 environmentally friendly trees across Karachi, saying urgent measures are needed to counter the city’s worsening heat, humidity and the growing impact of climate change.
In a statement issued on Friday, Fauzia Siddiqui said Karachi was facing an increasingly severe environmental crisis and required immediate action to restore its green cover. She stressed that the city’s rapidly rising temperatures and deteriorating climate conditions demanded emergency intervention.
She said that while mature trees were being cut down at an alarming pace, little attention was being paid to replacing them with new plantations. As a result, Karachi was steadily being transformed into a “concrete jungle”, with the loss of green spaces significantly contributing to higher temperatures and prolonged heat and humidity affecting millions of residents.
The PTI leader criticised what she described as “symbolic plantation campaigns”, alleging that tree plantation announcements were made for publicity purposes but the projects were rarely completed. She further alleged that public funds allocated for green initiatives had been wasted, while several plantation schemes had fallen victim to corruption.
Fauzia Siddiqui urged the Sindh government to immediately initiate a practical, transparent and independently monitored programme to plant more than 100,000 trees across the metropolis in order to improve environmental conditions and provide residents with cleaner air.
Highlighting the growing threats posed by global warming and climate change, she called for the immediate implementation of a “Green Karachi Project” on an emergency basis. She also appealed to international non-governmental organisations and environmental institutions to support large-scale afforestation initiatives aimed at restoring Karachi’s green landscape.
The PTI spokesperson further demanded an immediate halt to the illegal felling of trees across the city and called for strict legal action against those responsible. She expressed concern that the relevant authorities had remained silent spectators while Karachi’s environmental balance continued to deteriorate.
Warning of the long-term consequences of inaction, Ms Siddiqui said that unless serious and practical measures were taken today to make Karachi greener, the city could face an unprecedented environmental and humanitarian crisis in the years ahead. She maintained that protecting Karachi’s environment was not only the government’s responsibility but also a collective obligation of society, requiring immediate, effective and transparent action.
