MANSEHRA: Chairman of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly`s Standing Committee on Natural Resources and Minerals Akram Ghazi on Tuesday said that the government was committed to protecting forests and therefore,treefelling and timber transportation had been banned.

He also said around three dozen mines, excavating precious stones in forestlands, had been closed down in theprovince.

`Illegal mining has damaged natural resources and the environment, so a crackdown on it has beenlaunched across the province,` Mr Ghazi told reporters in Oghi.

He said that illegal mining activities were reported in the Mansehra district, promptingaction to check them.

`The government is working on a comprehensive strategy to address these issues, he said.

The standing committee`s chairman said he was striving to secure an adequate share of royalties for Oghi and other tehsils of Mansehra district, where natural resources were excavated before transportation to otherparts ofthe country.

He said minera; royaltieswould be spent on people`s welfare and construction of roads and otherinfrastructure damaged due to mining and mineral transportation.

`Mansehra is rich in natural resources and forest cover, so the government is taking all possible measures for their protection. People should report illegal mining forstrict action,` he said.

INAUGURATED: Deputy Inspector General of Police Hazara Range Nasir Mehmood Sattiinaugurated a police hospital, a command and control room and a resthouse in Torghar district on Tuesday.

`The police department aims to provide all necessary facilities and services to its personnel so that they can perform duty with utmost honesty and professionalism,` Mr Sattitold the hospital inauguration ceremony in Judbah.

He said that the police department had built the health facility on a self-help basis and hired doctors, paramedics, and other staff members to offer quality health services to police personnel and their families.

`Torghar, which was notified as a settled district from a tribal area through a presidential order in 2011, is highly sensitive as it connects Malakand with Hazara Division,` he said.

Mr Satti said close-circuit TV cameras had also been installed in the town and its suburbs.

He saidthe police continued to uphold the legacy of their martyrs, standing as an iron wall against miscreants.`Our control room will monitor movements of outlaws and send alert messages to the divisional headquarters for timely action,` he said.

The DIG directed the district police officer to crack down on outlaws and suspected criminals for maintaining peace.

`I want all proclaimed offenders behind the bars, so the search and strike operation should be extended to the mountainous parts of the district,` he said.

Mr Satti said a crackdown should also be initiated on unlicensed arms, as the protection of public life and property was the police`s top priority.

DPO Mukhtar Shah said the police had arrested several outlaws during a crackdown.