ISLAMABAD: The ongoing tree-cutting campaign in Islamabad has sparked a heated debate among the ruling coalition partners, with key allies questioning the government’s approach in the National Assembly on Tuesday.
Shazia Marri from the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) raised concerns, citing reports that thousands of trees had been cut down across the capital, including in areas like Shakarparian. She called the matter “very serious.” Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) leader Dr. Farooq Sattar also expressed his doubts, highlighting the felling of old trees due to construction activities in the city, which he said should not have occurred.
In response, the Islamabad district administration clarified that the tree-cutting initiative was focused on paper mulberry trees, which have been causing health issues in the capital.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Ali Mohammad Khan acknowledged the removal of wild mulberry trees due to pollination but questioned the cutting of trees that were 40 to 50 years old.
The opposition and government allies alike called for the matter to be referred to the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Environment for further review.
Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry addressed the House, stating that only the allergy-causing paper mulberry trees had been removed. He emphasized that the capital was now “greener than before” and announced plans to plant an additional 60,000 trees by the end of March.
Responding to concerns raised by MNA Muhammad Riaz Fatyana over the excessive tree-cutting, Chaudhry defended the initiative, stating that the issue had been widely discussed in the media but clarified that only specific tree species had been targeted. He explained that tree removal typically occurred for three reasons: development activities under the city’s master plan, infrastructure projects such as roads and underpasses, and the removal of hazardous species like paper mulberry.
Chaudhry assured that all infrastructure projects undertaken in the past 18 months had adhered to the required environmental processes, including public hearings, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reviews, and mapping through internationally recognized methods like NDVI. He also pointed out that over 40,000 mature trees had already been planted, and 60,000 more were scheduled for planting by March.
To support his claims, Chaudhry referred to Sparco imagery, Google Maps data, and NDVI analysis, which he said demonstrated an increase in Islamabad’s greenery between 2023 and 2025, contradicting the notion that green cover was decreasing.
He invited parliamentarians and journalists to attend an on-ground technical briefing to verify the data and stressed that removing paper mulberry trees was not a revenue-generating activity, as significant resources were required to prevent regrowth.
The matter was referred to the relevant committee for further scrutiny.
Later, Climate Change Minister Musadiq Malik visited Shakarparian to monitor the tree-cutting efforts. He reiterated the importance of complying with EPA guidelines and warned that action would be taken if local trees were cut due to negligence or systemic issues. He also defended the tree-cutting initiative, citing the impact of pollen allergies on 30 to 37% of the population and assured that show-cause notices would be issued if construction projects violated environmental guidelines.
