Margalla Hills Trail-5 cleanup kicks off 14th Pakistan Mountain Festival

ISLAMABAD: The 14th Pakistan Mountain Festival, organized annually through Devcom-Pakistan to have a good time International Mountain Day, started out with a a success cleanup force at Margalla Hills Trail-5 on Sunday. Over a hundred enthusiastic students from numerous universities joined fingers to raise cognizance about the renovation of mountain ecosystems and the significance of natural resource conservation. International Mountain Day, determined globally on December eleven, changed into installed via the United Nations to highlight the crucial importance of mountain ecosystems in assisting life on Earth. Mountains cowl 22 percentage of the planet’s land surface and provide important sources, consisting of freshwater for half of of humanity. The day also serves to draw attention to the challenges dealing with mountain regions, together with weather alternate, habitat loss, and the struggles of mountain groups. Addressing the participants, Devcom-Pakistan Executive Director and Founder of Pakistan Mountain Festival, Munir Ahmed emphasised the important role of mountain ecosystems in maintaining biodiversity, regulating weather, and presenting important services like clean water and air purification. “Mountains are existence-assist structures for thousands and thousands of humans globally. Protecting these ecosystems isn’t only a nearby responsibility but a global vital,” he said. Munir Ahmed also highlighted the function of the Pakistan Mountain Festival in raising focus about those issues over the last 14 years. “Citizens can proactively play their position because the custodians of mountains. Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) with the aid of citizens has performed a great role in maintaining the Margalla Hills National Park. It should keep doing so. Devcom-Pakistan’s mountain pageant has come to be a platform to interact communities, specifically youngsters, in conservation efforts even as celebrating the rich cultural and ecological historical past of Pakistan’s mountains. Through numerous sports including cleanups, exhibitions, cultural performances, meetings and youth forums, we’ve worked to mainstream mountain demanding situations and bring them to the vanguard of country wide discourse”, he said. Chairperson of the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB), Rina Saeed Khan bolstered the significance of the Margalla Hills National Park for Islamabad’s unexpectedly growing population. “These hills are critical not only for their biodiversity however for the ecological services they offer, which include water retention, flood prevention, and temperature regulation. Protecting them is imperative for the town’s nicely-being,” she stated. The cleanup pressure also served as a effective reminder of the pressing need to cope with threats to the Margalla Hills, inclusive of littering, encroachments, and unsustainable development. By actively collaborating, college students and children showcased their commitment to protecting these vital ecosystems and pledged to inspire others to do the identical. Speaking about the other sports, Devcom-Pakistan Creative Director Riffat Ara Baig said, The Pakistan Mountain Festival will preserve with a sequence of sports, which include cultural performances, stay portray, and exhibitions, promoting focus about mountain ecosystems and the demanding situations faced by using mountain communities. She stated that major sports consist of Raja Changez Sultan Himalayan Odyssey Award exhibition, tenth Pakistan Youth Forum, fifth Pakistan Mountains Pride Awards, and a college students live portray opposition on the theme of mountain historical past. She favored IWMB announcing that IWMB has done an outstanding task, specifically within the previous couple of years under the leadership of Rina Saeed Khan in safeguarding Margalla Hills National Park. She said that traffic can see for themselves the newly renovated Visitor Information Centers, clean trails, thriving flora and fauna and accelerated patrolling and vigilance through the wildlife rangers. She said that IWMB is running tough to make certain that MHNP might be preserved and guarded for future generations to experience. This is a useful service supplied to the town of  Islamabad in this period of climate alternate, she delivered.