Islamabad: IHC orders CDA to speed up removal of paper mulberry trees

[Naveed Yaseen]

Islamabad High Court (IHC) Judge Justice Muhammad Amjad Iqbal Qureshi Monday directed the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to speed up the eradication process of paper mulberry trees from the metropolis so that its inhabitants suffering from pollen allergy could live in a comfortable atmosphere.

Sardar Alam, a resident of Islamabad, had filed a writ petition in the IHC, stating that he and some of his family members were suffering from pollen allergy. According to him, more than 80,000 persons were suffering from pollen allergy in twin cities. Some patients have to leave the city during the pollen allergy season, he added.

The CDA had submitted a report in the court, stating that trees causing pollen allergy were identified and action plan for their eradication has been chalked out. In this connection, about 6,811 paper mulberry trees were removed during the last pollen allergy season. More trees will be removed in the next season (from October 2009 to January 2010).

In its report, the CDA has stated that the cutting of paper mulberry trees in urban areas will be completed in three years. In his petition, Sardar Alam stated that the increase in pollen count was not only causing problems for pollen allergy patients but it is also causing some other ailments like asthma and skin allergies.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=177165