THIS is apropos Malik Asim Aslam`s letter `KP forestion drive` ( Feb 6). Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is famous for its walnuts, fig, almonds, pistachio, apples, apricots and other fruit-bearing trees. May I request authorities toplantthe aboveinstead of poplar trees, which may grow faster and show `quick gains` Hazelnuts are one of the costliest nuts and they require a weather similar to that of KP. They can be planted on slopes, mountains and plains. Two American students ofaleadingbusiness schoolstarted Mountain Hazelnut Venture Private Ltd (MHVPL) in Bhutan where deforestation had denuded the mountains causingmassive landand mud-slides. Since there are no trees the weather changed, leaving little for farmers to grow. They all started to move to cities causing a massive social imbalance. The hazelnut Bhutanese produce are treated,sorted outand exported by MHVPL all over the world.
With this initiative people are moving back to their villages and tendering to their hazelnut forests. No one cuts these trees for fuel and now Bhutan is one of the leading producers of hazelnuts.
