LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Wednesday sought detailed replies from federal ministry of climate change and provincial government regarding preservation of forests.

Eco Watch Trust, an NGO working for environment, filed a writ petition pleading that forest cover in Pal(istan had been shrinl(ing due to overexploitation of forest resources for private use and lack of awareness among the masses.

The petition filed through Advocate Imran Haider said the timber mafia was another factor behind the loss of forest cover. It said total forest area in Pakistan was 4.224m hectares, which was 4.8pc of the country`s total land area. It stated forests played a major role in keeping the air clean and producing oxygen.

The petition pointed out the neighbouring country recently allocated $6.2bn for reforestation, setting a target of nine per centincrease in the forest cover from the existing 23-24pc. It said forests were essential to keep the planet alive and play a key role in the battle against climate change.

However, it said, no serious effort had been made by the authorities concerned to utilise the potential of forestry as substantial forest area in Punjab was in illegal possession of land mafia or housing societies.

It said the government set up a number of ministries and departments devoted to environment protection but they made no serious attempt in this regard. It held both federal and provincial governments responsible for the speedy degradation of the environment in the country.

It asked the court to order the authorities concerned to make serious efforts to preserve forests and to devise an effective mechanism to avoid illegal cutting of trees.

Justice Ayesha A. Malik held a brief hearing of the petition and sought replies from the governments within two weeks.