Forest land: SC directs Sindh government to take action against illegal occupants

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the Sindh government to immediately take steps against the illegal occupants of the forest land in the province and cancel all the illegal allotments. The Survey of Pakistan director general was ordered to demarcate entire forest land in all the provinces and submit its report within three weeks.
Sindh Advocate General Talib Hussain informed the court that about 145,000 acres of forest land are under illegal occupation, while 70,000 acres of land were allotted illegally, adding the allotment was done by the Revenue Department. He prayed to the court to direct secretaries of revenue department and forest for cancellation of the illegal allotments. He said that highly influential persons are involved and, therefore, the government of Sindh is unable to get the forest land vacated.
A three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar was hearing petitions of Qazi Ali Athar and others for recovering of the forest land in Sindh from encroachers.
The petitioners contended that since 1927 forests have not been demarcated. The chief conservator forests (CCF) submitted a comprehensive report with 30 years forest maps and record.
The petitioners submitted additional documents as evidence with a statement that secretary forests was himself involved in forest grabbing over 561 acres in Matiari Forest. The additional secretary technical forests has also occupied 150 acres in Rohri Forest, and also CCF social forestry and CCF mangrove are involved in NAB cases for misappropriation of funds, even in the name of Forest Employers Cooperative Housing Society.
They argued that people are severely and adversely affected by the change in meteorological conditions due to massive deforestation and tress cutting, which not only harms and continuously threatens their mental and physical health, quality of life and well-being, but also infringes upon their constitutionally guaranteed "right to life" and the inalienable "fundamental rights" of the petitioners and the future generations of Pakistan, besides being in violation of the "Doctrine of Public Trust."
They stated that in Karachi metropolis, thousands of shady tress have been replaced with non-environment friendly conocarpus only for monetary gains by a political mafia and dumping of municipal waste on mangrove forests is evident particularly in Chashma, Fisheries, Ibrahim Hyderi, Kaka Pir, Machar Colony, Rehri, Sandspit and Younis Abad for reclamation purposes.
The petitioners said time to time they indicate this core issue of global importance through national print and electronic media, but no one heeds towards their gentle voices.