PESHAWAR: Two motorcyclists reached here on Saturday on a campaign ‘save forests - save lives’ to create awareness among people against deforestation.

Talking to media persons, one of the campaigners, Mukaram Tareen Jahan Gard said they had started the journey from Lahore and visited different cities.

The visit is sponsored jointly by Cross Route Motorcycle Travellers Club of Pakistan and Rotary Club Pakistan.

The 11-day tour, he said would end on their return to Lahore after completing 3,200 kilometres journey.

He said the cities so far visited were Okara, Khanewal, Bahawalpur, Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Loralai, Ziarat, Quetta, Zhob, Dera Ismail Khan, Kohat, Peshawar and Islamabad.

Mukaram Tareen said they also observed the situation of forests in different areas like Changa Manga, Ziarat, Kohat, Attock, Bahawalpur and in Islamabad and also participated in a special event arranged at Ziarat Balochistan in connection with the International Forest Day on March 21.

“We talked to the people about the significance of thousands of years old forests, especially about the juniper (snobar) trees, and urged them to extend cooperation to each other in protection of forests, particularly rare trees.

He stressed the need for the federal and provincial governments to take effective steps for protection of forests as the trees were extremely essential for human beings.

He said it was duty of every citizen to plant new saplings and protect the existing trees.

Published in Dawn, March 26th, 2017