Billion tree tsunami gayi bhaar mein?
Imran Khan has been leading Naya Pakistan with a number of promises.
Not all of them are being fulfilled but at least he’s trying, right?
Well, ever since before he was sworn in as the Prime Minister of our country, one of the major things Imran led with was his concern for the environment and pushing our way into a greener Pakistan. Because of this concern, Khan kicked off his ‘billion tree tsunami,’ in efforts to cover the country in trees to eliminate or at least battle toxic air pollution.
Not something we thought Imran would focus so heavily on given the precedent set by other leaders in this country but it seemed he fulfilled his promise instead. Well, possibly, until now.
The Government is now proposing to offer low-quality fuel that has been said to cause some of the largest amounts of pollution in Pakistan.
It’s as bad as it sounds.
The proposal outlines that 80-82RON petrol, the low-grade fuels we keep referring to, will be offered to motorcyclists as a cheaper alternative to more expensive high-grade fuels, 92RON, that are less toxic to the environment. We switched over to high-grade fuels three decades ago in order to match up to international standards.
However now, Imran is keen to look into the un-banning of these fuels and strategizing a practical way of implementing them back into society. This, in turn, will also keep oil refineries in business, great for them, horrible for our air and in the big picture, the quality of our lives in Pakistan.
Pakistanis are extremely alarmed at the Government’s move and how it could potentially destroy us.
Unbelievable. After 2yrs of campaigning for clean fuel and refineries to upgrade, and @aminattock well-informed about fuel issues, PTI govt is discussing a proposal to make it easy for 60yr old Refineries to continue operating without upgrades.https://t.co/duuVRE9r6m pic.twitter.com/wJXMN4Rg1T
— Dawar Hameed Butt (@thelahorewala) May 21, 2019
Cosmetic tree plantation drives on one side; reversing a three decade long ban on unclean fuel on the other (where recent studies have now shown that vehicular emissions are the biggest cause of the Air Quality Crisis.) Absurdity. https://t.co/Wns7HiRw8m
— Kala Kawa (@kaalakawaa) May 21, 2019
Not content with savaging the economy, the Government now considers low-grade fuel as a cheap alternative for motorbikes. Now they're going after our lungs #AirQuality #CleanAir4All #SansLenayDo https://t.co/pQ60ZW7U2U
— Ahmad Rafay Alam (@rafay_alam) May 21, 2019
This happens when human development takes a back seat. Our entire GDP centric development paradigm indicator is wrong on so many levels.
— Nida Usman Ch (@NidaUsmanCh) May 21, 2019
At this point, as a country, we need to create awareness among our citizens and show them what’s at stake. For years we have been fighting to show our strength as a country and our commitment to a cleaner world. Now in efforts to save a penny, we may just revert back to ways that can kill us most.
All we can do now is hope that the public outcry changes the minds of Imran Khan and all those standing in favor of the proposal.
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Cover photo source: dawn.com