Greening Pakistan: 1.7 mn saplings take root on independence day in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
PESHAWAR (APP): On a historic day when Pakistan celebrated the freedom won nearly eight decades ago, thousands of hands across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa turned to a quieter act of planting trees to offset effects of climate change.
More than 1.7 million saplings were planted at 40 major sites in 15 districts of the province on Independence Day, exceeding the official target of 1.4 million and giving a distinctly green character to the celebrations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
For Chief Conservator of Forests Ahmad Jalil, the significance of the afforestation campaign lies far beyond the numbers of plants but the mission to mitigate the growing effects of climate change and air pollution.
“Tree planting is no longer merely a government activity,” he said, describing the growing participation of children, students, teachers, young people, elders, volunteers, civil society organizations, local communities and government institutions as evidence of an emerging environmental consciousness.
The scenes accompanying the campaign reflected a changing relationship between people and the land around them. Children placed young plants into freshly prepared soil while students and teachers joined hands with officials besides volunteers and local communities took part alongside government departments.
For many, the small saplings represented something much larger than a day’s activity as they represented hope to strengthen Govt hands against floods and desertification.
In a province increasingly exposed to the consequences of a changing climate, including rising temperatures, floods, air pollution and extreme weather, planting a tree has become an increasingly visible expression of concern for the future.
Ahmad Jalil said public participation in this year’s campaign was particularly encouraging compared with previous decades. Awareness of environmental challenges, he noted, is reaching ordinary citizens, creating the social foundation needed for lasting environmental change.
“I have planted 2000 plants on my farm lands on independence day to protect it from ersions threats of river Kabul,” said Kamal Khan, a farmer of Pabbi tehsil Nowshera district.
He said a labour was engage for its proper upkeeping and water besides saving it from livestock.
However, the real test begins after the photographs are taken and the planting ceremonies end, said Dr Shafiqur Rehman, former Chairman Environmental Sciences Department at University of Peshawar.
He said a sapling pushed into the ground is only the beginning and its survival depends on water, protection, care and regular monitoring often for years.
“The true success of tree planting does not simply mean putting a sapling into the ground,” he said, adding success means ensuring that the young plant grows into a healthy by regular watering, care and thriving tree.
Dr Shafiq said that challenge is particularly important when millions of saplings are planted within a short period.
The Forest Department produces millions of saplings of different species in its nurseries every year. Increasingly, however, the emphasis is shifting from simply counting plants to choosing the right tree for the right place.
Species selection is being linked to local climate, soil, elevation, rainfall, water availability and biodiversity. Such an approach can improve survival rates while helping strengthen local ecosystems.
The monsoon tree-planting campaign is continuing across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with Independence Day provided its most prominent phase.
Ahmad Jalil described the historic occasion as a moment when the celebration of freedom was connected with another kind of responsibility, leaving behind a greener and safer homeland for future generations.
Across the province, members of the public, young people, volunteers, social organizations and institutions also planted large numbers of saplings, turning an official campaign into a broader community effort.
“These were not merely saplings; they were green commitments written today, by today’s hands, in the name of tomorrow,” he said.
The millions of young plants now scattered across the province carry a promise but also a warning. Without sustained care, watering, many newly planted saplings may not survive.
Ahmad Jalil called for systematic records showing where saplings have been planted, their survival rates, growth and long-term maintenance. Monitoring, he said, must become as important as planting itself.
The difference between planting millions of saplings and growing millions of mature trees could ultimately determine whether the campaign becomes a lasting environmental success.
That distinction is especially important in a province where forests can provide more than shade and scenic beauty.
With proper planning, forest restoration could also contribute to rural livelihoods, employment and the wider economy. Dr Salimur Rehman suggested that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa should explore international environmental finance mechanisms through which forests and their contribution to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions can potentially be assigned financial value.
For that to happen, forests would need to be carefully measured, documented, independently verified and protected over the long term.
Any resources generated through such mechanisms could, in turn, support forest protection, nursery expansion, research, wildfire prevention, native-species propagation and community participation.
In such a model, a tree could become much more than a symbol of environmental responsibility. It could become part of a sustainable economic cycle.
The province’s green future, however, depends on more than forests.
Dr Shafiq also highlighted the importance of protecting agricultural land from unplanned construction and unchecked urban expansion.
As towns and cities grow, fertile fields are increasingly under pressure from buildings and concrete. Losing productive agricultural land could create long-term challenges for food security, water resources, the environment and the rural economy.
The answer, he suggested, is not to stop development but to pursue a different kind of development one in which cities can expand while farmland remains protected and trees continue to thrive.
Agroforestry offers one possible path and farmers and landowners can grow fruit-bearing, shade-providing and economically valuable trees alongside crops, selecting species suited to local soil and climate conditions.
With time, such trees can provide additional income while helping improve soil fertility, conserve water, reduce erosion and increase resilience against extreme weather.
Dr. Shafiq said iis a vision in which the countryside does not have to choose between agriculture and trees.
For a child planting a sapling today, the reward may come years later, when that small plant has become a tree providing shade on a hot afternoon.
For a farmer, it may eventually mean fruit, income or protection for a field and for a community, it may mean cleaner air, healthier soil and a more resilient landscape.
And for future generations, it could mean that the green commitments made on this Independence Day were not forgotten once the ceremonies ended.
Pakistan’s freedom was won by earlier generations. Preserving its air, water, soil and natural resources is a responsibility being handed to the present generation while millions of saplings planted this year are a beginning.
Their survival and the forests they may one day become will tell the real story of how seriously that responsibility was taken.
