PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has sought the intervention of the federal government to stop the ‘forcible’ takeover of a Pakistan Forest Institute (PFI) field station located in Bhurban, Murree district, by the Punjab forest authorities.

PFI, the premier forestry research organisation in the country, operates a field station in Bhurban over 2.4 acres of land. It was a federal entity until it was handed over to the KP government following the enactment of the 18th Constitutional Amendment in 2010.

A senior official of KP climate change, forestry, environment and wildlife department told Dawn that on April 14, the deputy conservator (forests) in Murree, along with his team, visited the PFI field station in Bhurban and directed the management to hand over the station to the Punjab government within three days. He warned that non-compliance with the orders would result in eviction through the Punjab Enforcement and Regulatory Authority (PERA).

The official said that the KP forestry secretary later wrote to his Punjab counterpart asking him to direct that deputy conservator to avoid creating illegal hindrances in the way of research and academic activities at PFI field station in Bhurban.

Inter-provincial coordination ministry asks Punjab to take issue to CCI or constitutional court

“The KP government believed that the directions were issued by the deputy conservator Murree without any prior intimation, written notice or formal communication to PFI, Peshawar. Also, no legal justification, administrative order or approval of the competent authority (federal government) was shared with PFI in support of the proposed action,” he said.

The official said such an abrupt directive, lacking due legal process and formal correspondence, could adversely affect the ongoing research, educational and training activities at the station, as well as the lawful possession of PFI over the said facility.

He, however, said that Murree forest authorities didn’t stop and visited the facility again, forcing KP to take the issue to federal inter-provincial coordination (IPC) ministry.

Another official said that the meeting had resulted in a “temporary calm”.

“The IPC ministry told the Punjab government to take the issue to the Council of Common Interest (CCI) or the Federal Constitutional Court as they simply cannot capture it forcibly,” he said.

Officials said PFI Peshawar was established in 1947 to fulfil the national requirements of research, education and training in the field of forestry and allied disciplines, whereas, it functioned as an attached department under the federal government.

They said during that period, the federal government, in consultation with the respective provincial governments, allocated forest land across various ecological zones for the establishment of PFI field stations to facilitate research, education and training activities.

The officials said that PFI field station in Bhurban was one of such stations where various buildings and structures have been constructed over an area of 2.4 acres, which was in the ownership of an entity for official business since 1970.

They said that following the 18th Constitutional Amendment, PFI, along with all its assets, was devolved to KP government on July 1, 2011 and declared as an attached department of the KP Climate Change, Forestry, Environment and Wildlife department.

An official said that as per the said notification, the estate, buildings and physical assets of PFI shall remain the property of the environment department and shall not be transferred to any other organisation except for official requirements of the environment department.

He also said that the provincial government allowed PFI to continue its functions at the national level as previously performed under the federal government.

“The PFI has continued to provide services to all federating units in the areas of research, education and training in forestry and allied disciplines,” he said.

The official said that the institute was also imparting BS Forestry education, with reserved seats for all provinces including Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and Gilgit-Baltistan, and departmental nominees were regularly sponsored by respective provincial forest and wildlife departments.

He also said that PFI field station, Bhurban was an important station for conducting research related to moist temperate forests.

“Researchers from PFI frequently visit the station for conducting studies and establishing experimental trials. Students of the BS Forestry program also visit and reside at the station for educational and training purposes. The field station is staffed by permanent field personnel, and all expenditure, including staff salaries, repair and maintenance, utility bills and research activities, are being met out from the KP exchequer,” he said.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2026