KARACHI: Sindh’s Coastal Development Authority (CDA) on Thursday decided on plantation of Palm trees over 1000 acres of land in Thatta district.
A meeting of the Coastal Development Authority, chaired by provincial minister Ismail Rahu decided to launch the palm trees plantation project, which have an estimated cost of Rs 356 million.
“Around 60,000 trees will be planted on the land under the project,” Ismail Rahu said. “Palm trees will be planted in current year and a single tree in average will give a yield of one maund oil,” the minister said.
It was briefed in the meeting that the Forest Department has handed over 2,000 acres of land to the Coastal Development Authority for the project.
It is pertinent to mention here that the Sindh Cabinet last year approved plantation of Palm trees on 3000 acres land.
Sindh’s Coastal Development Authority had requested for allocation of 3000 acres forest land for palm trees plantation.
The CDA had earlier initiated a pilot project of the palm tree plantation on 30 acres of land.
A mini extraction plant of palm oil was also run by the Sindh’s Environment and Coastal Development departments, producing palm oil from the CDA farm, Sindh Adviser Murtaza Wahab earlier said.
Pakistan annually spends billions of dollars’ foreign exchange on the import of palm oil and other edible oils. The local production of palm oil could help the country substantially save its precious foreign exchange reserves.
