A three member
delegation of PML-N’s women political leaders on Thursday called
upon Federal Minister for Climate Change, Senator Mushahidullah Khan and
discussed dismal state of paced environmental degradation, deforestation and
wildlife hunting in their respective constituencies. The delegation comprising
PML-N’s MNA Ms Khalida Mansoor from Bahawalnagar, MNA Ms Nighat Parveen from
Jehlum and MNA Shahnaz Saleem Malik from Dera Ghazi Khan urged the climate
change minister to look into the sorry state of these environmental issues and
urged him to play his part to addresses these issues. “The environmental
degradation, illegal tree-cutting and hunting of wildlife has reached and
alarming level. Besides, the rampant tree cutting has not only speeded up the
environmental degradation but also increased vulnerabilities of their
constituencies to myriad climate change-caused problems, particularly flooding,
heatwaves, dust storms, land and river erosion,” the PM-N political leaders,
who are also members of the National Assembly Committee on Climate Change, told
the minister Mushahidullah Khan.
They also pointed out that the role of local government
officials working in environment, forest and wildlife departments are mere
silent s[ecatrs and are doing nothing to overcome these environmental
challenges, posing risk to the health of the local people. PML-N’s MNA Khalida
Mansoor said that deterioration of the environment through paced depletion of
resources, particularly deforestation, insane ground water use for irrigation
purposes, increased air pollution soil degradation because of excessive use of
chemical fertilisers and lack of proper solid waste management in Bahawalpur
district has led to the dismal situation of environment and various public
health issues/diseases. The same situation of the environmental destruction in
Jehlum and Dera Ghazi Khan was also shared with the minister by MNA Nighat
Parveen and MNA Shahnaz Saleem Malik. Mushahidullah Khan expressed his
disappointment about the role of local environment, forest and wildlife
departments working in the Bahawalpur, Jehlum and Dera Ghazi Khan for failing
to play their role to address the environmental issues, soaring deforestation
and unchecked hutting of wildlife. He assued the women MNAs of his all-out
support and promised to play his part to address these local environmental
issues and bring to book those involved in the degradation of the environment,
illegal tree-cutting and wildlife hunting and no official responsible to tackle
these issues. Mushahidullah Khan noted that environmental degradation, which
has alarmingly reduced of the capacity of the country’s environment to meet
local social and ecological objectives, and needs, has peaked and endangered
the lives of the people and wildlife. “Not only people are being deprived of
their right to pollution-free environment and healthy lives but wildlife species
are also vanishing gradually because of loss of the habitats due to
rampant environmental degradation that costs billions of rupees to the national
exchequer annually,” he highlighted.
Mr. Khan also urged all stakeholders in government and
non-governmental sectors to join government’s hand to protect the environment
further destruction and play part to rehabilitate the environment. He said
further that the present government is aware of the pressing environetnal and
climate change issues has taken various policy measures to address them in
collaboration with civil society organisations. However, pubic awareness is key
to achieve the goal of the sustainable and clean environment for us all.
Everyone of us has to play its role to achieve the goal of sustainable and
clean environment for the present and future generations, particularly through
judicious use of natural resources,” Mushahidullah Khan said.
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