QUETTA: The provincial forest department has lodged an FIR against the vice chancellor of Balochistan University for getting a large number of trees cut down in the varsity premises.

“Around 45 trees of Quetta pine were cut down in the university premises last week,” forest officials said, adding that a case had been registered against the vice chancellor on behalf of a guard of the forest department, Mohammad Ramzan.

The conservator of the forest department, Niaz Kakar, said that Quetta pine trees were considered to be the oldest trees on the campus.

“Under forest laws there is no permission of cutting down these trees,” Mr Kakar said, adding these trees were planted in 1970 after its saplings were brought from Iran.

However, the university denied the allegations and said it had no information about the action taken by the forest department. “We have no official information about the FIR lodged by the forest department against the university,” Balochistan University spokesman Amir Hamza said. “The university is taking care of all trees and saplings inside the university premises.”

However, he said, some trees had withered because of a long dry spell in Quetta and seasonal diseases, forcing the institution to cut down a few trees.

He pointed out that the university had planted new trees and had a plan to plant 2,000 more.

Published in Dawn, April 12th, 2019