How Karachi can benefit from Moringa Tree

Around the world, big cities are to face bigger urban challenges in terms of health, food and security, by keeping their environment and recreation sustainable. Karachi is no exception. The air and atmosphere of the megacity is polluted, water and agriculture are contaminated and the traffic mismanagement is at alarming level where carbon emissions have densely affected the urban sphere.

Haphazard constructions in the last ten to fifteen years have further destroyed the environment due to deforestation. Approximately a hundred thousand trees have been chopped down only at Sharah e Faisal, University Road and construction of Green Line Bus Rapid Line during the last year. That bleak scenario now demands from Karachi’ authorities including Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and all Cantonment Boards to go for afforestation drives and increase the green cover of the city.  

The “Miracle Tree” Moringa can play a beneficial and healthy role in this regard. The tree has enormous horticultural, medicinal as well as commercial benefits, which can transform the Karachi city. It is an efficient, affordable, easy and accessible solution against malnutrition. Besides taking up it as nourishing vegetable, the leaves, pulp and seeds of Moringa, it’s powder and other numerous products including cooking oil all are valuable solutions under one roof.  

More importantly Moringa suits and well fits on Karachi’ present needs and demands. It needs little water and horticultural maintenance. Moringa is an indigenous specie, much-needed in the city’ landscape to purify the atmosphere. Although, the urban forestry of Karachi is comprised of some important indigenous trees like Banyan, Peepal, Neem, Lignum and etc. But it is irony the city has more environment-unfriendly trees like Eucalyptus and Conocorpus which alien species, planted by civic administration in the last three decades as roadside plantation, in green belts and even in public parks. Karachi, as a matter of fact, needs green cover of indigenous trees and Moringa can lessen the unfriendly impacts of alien species.

 A civic drive to introduce and induct Moringa can be a good addition on city horticultural landscape. However, because of lack of space for cultivation in the city, Moringa should be inducted wisely in Karachi. The city administration can develop Moringa forests in the outskirts of the city, which will play a significant and healthy role in the betterment of city troposphere, important for raising chances of rainfall as well as deterring the heat island effects in Karachi. Here, these forests can also be used as urban agriculture from which the local government can earn a sizable revenue.

The KMC can run an awareness and free distribution campaign of Moringa revealing the benefits of tree and give free plants to people to grow it in their houses or do rooftop plantation that will not only increase the green cover of the city but also maintain a cooling atmosphere, affected by pollution and green house effect. In public parks good amount of Moringa can be planted to make recreational places green and healthy.

Hope, the KMC and Cantonments are going through these lines.

By

Editorial, Infocus