PESHAWAR, Aug 22: Iqra University Peshawar Campus is continuing its plantation drive to beautify and shape up the city.

As part of it, the Minister for Education, Culture and Sports Imtiaz Hussain Gilani on Thursday planted a Magnolia sapling on the campus of the university.

Mr Gilani appreciated the efforts of the university to plant trees in the provincial metropolis and to restore its greenery.

He said that plantation of saplings was a sacred cause but its maintenance was far more important in order to enable these trees to grow and the people could feel a change for better in the fast-polluted environment of the city.

He was of the view that there was a dire need to make the people inclined towards upkeep of the trees and refrain from cutting them. This, he said not only added to the beauty of the city but would also eliminate number of ailments.

The project director of the university, Obaidur Rehman outlined the objectives of the university. He said it was making efforts for  the advancement of science and technology and  for collaboration in the field of higher education and training for skilled manpower.