The Sindh government has launched a fresh enforcement drive to halt illegal tree cutting within the Kirthar National Park, deploying wildlife rangers to secure areas where timber mafias have operated with near-impunity for months.
Environment department officials confirmed the directive late Tuesday, ordering district forest officers to seize all unregistered machinery and vehicles found within the park’s protected zones. The move follows mounting pressure from conservationists who have documented the rapid thinning of native forests—specifically the destruction of *Acacia* and *Prosopis cineraria* trees—essential for the park’s fragile ecosystem.
For the local wildlife, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Kirthar serves as the primary sanctuary for the endangered Sindh ibex and the Urial. As the forest cover vanishes, these animals lose both their shelter and their primary food sources, pushing them closer to human settlements and increasing their vulnerability to poaching.
“We aren’t just losing trees; we are losing the buffer that keeps this park alive,” said a senior wildlife official, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the ongoing operations. “The timber is being hauled out under the cover of night, often through routes that bypass our main check-posts.”
The government’s strategy relies on a new coordination protocol between the Sindh Wildlife Department and local police. Previous attempts to curb the logging failed largely because of a lack of inter-agency cooperation. This time, the forest department has been granted “shoot-to-deter” authority in extreme cases of armed resistance, a stark escalation in the battle to protect the 3,000-square-kilometer reserve.
Environmentalists remain skeptical of the long-term impact. While the crackdown signals political will, the economic incentive for illegal logging—driven by high demand for charcoal and firewood in nearby urban centers—remains unchecked. Without a sustainable alternative for local communities who rely on these forests for fuel, activists argue the loggers will simply wait for the patrols to move on.
The forest department is now tasked with submitting a weekly report on the number of seizures and arrests made within the park’s boundaries. Whether this leads to a permanent shift in conservation or serves as a temporary optics-driven exercise will become clear as the dry season intensifies, heightening the risk of further deforestation.
