This is a long battle, but thankfully we have started the process: Imran Khan
news desk
ISLAMABAD
Prime Minister Imran Khan launched the biggest tree plantation campaign in the history of the country today targeting a plantation of around 3.5 million trees in a day across the country.
He addressed a ceremony in Islamabad, thanking all those who had participated in today’s campaign.
He said that Pakistan is among the top ten countries in the world most affected by climate change. “Our wheat production has fallen over the past two years due to climate change and unprecedented rainfall.”
“If we keep continuing on this path, then some of the areas will become deserts,” he said, adding, “It is our responsibility to make the country green for future generations”.
“The 3.5 million saplings that we have planted today is just the start. This is a constant, ongoing battle, [but] we are not doing this for us. We are doing it for the coming generations,” he said.
“This is just the beginning. he said, promising that trees would be planted in empty spaces across cities. The prime minister also urged women to participate. “The women have to participate the most,” he said. He added that the nation also had to focus on cleaning the country’s rivers, in addition to making the country green. “So first we have to make the country green by planting trees, but simultaneously we also have to focus on cleanliness and make our rivers clean once again. Planting trees will also help in cleaning our climate and lessening pollution.” The prime minister concluded his speech by appreciating the Tiger Force volunteers. “You are our future. The work you did today, you did it to improve your own and the country’s future.”
“Today Pakistan is among those few countries that have successfully managed to control the pandemic,” he said, and that the world now recognises Pakistan’s successful strategy.
He also urged the nation to not defy standard operating procedures (SOPs) just because the number of cases was falling. “Wear a mask every time you leave the house,” he said, adding that not wearing one would amount to being “ungrateful”.
He also requested Shia Muslims to take precautionary measures during Muharram. “This is a time for precaution. If God has blessed us, then we need to be thankful and wear a mask.”
In a tweet, Prime Minister invited everyone to join him today in planting trees all over Pakistan. He also asked the parliamentarians, ministers, chief ministers, and Tiger Force volunteers to participate in the biggest tree planting campaign.
Over a million volunteers of the Prime Minister’s Tiger Force will also plant trees as part of the Ten Billion Tree Tsunami initiative.
“The target is 35 lakh trees in a day though we will try to exceed it,” said the prime minister in his tweet.
International ambassadors such as the Chinese Ambassador Yao Jing, Azerbaijan Ambassador Ali Alizada, and Turkish Ambassador Ihsan Mustafa Yurdaku also contributed to the drive by planting saplings at their respective embassies.
Addressing a press conference on Saturday, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam said that two million saplings will be planted in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 1.2 million in Punjab, 303,646 in Azad Kashmir, 57,000 in Balochistan, and 15,000 in Gilgit-Baltistan.
A total of 682 events have been organized across the country with the participation of national and international NGOs, educational institutes, and local communities.
