ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) this week disclosed that over 20,000 companies and freelancers have so far registered for Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) through its official website, days after it announced banning illegal ones. 
Pakistan’s Ministry of Interior sent a letter to the PTA on Friday asking it to block illegal VPNs across the country, citing their use by militant groups for financial transactions and violent activities.
This directive follows international criticism of Pakistan’s Internet restrictions, notably after the February general elections, where allegations of electoral manipulation led to the blocking of social media platform X. Media reports also suggested the government was setting up a national firewall, which had led to the slowdown of Internet speed across Pakistan. 
“To date, more than 20,000 companies and freelancers have successfully registered their VPNs through this efficient process,” the PTA said in a statement on Saturday.
The PTA said it had streamlined the VPN registration process for organizations and freelancers, saying that entities such as software houses, call centers, banks, embassies, and freelancers can now easily register their VPNs online through the PTA’s official website: www.pta.gov.pk.
It said the registration process involves completing an online form and providing basic details, including the national identity card number, company registration details and taxpayer status. 
Meanwhile, it said freelancers must submit documentation, such as a letter or email, verifying their project or company association. Additionally, it said applicants must provide the IP address for VPN connectivity. If a fixed IP address is required, it can be acquired from an Internet Service Provider (ISP).
“The registration process is free, and approvals are typically granted within 8–10 hours of submission,” the PTA said.
After the interior ministry circulated its letter calling for a ban on VPNs on Friday, the Council of Islamic Ideology, a constitutional advisory body that reviews laws to ensure they align with Islamic principles, also declared VPNs usage “un-Islamic” in a statement the same day.  
“The government and the state have the authority, from an Islamic perspective, to prevent all actions that lead to wrongdoing or facilitate it,” the council’s chairman, Raghib Hussain Naeemi, was quoted as saying in the statement. 
“Therefore, measures to block or restrict access to immoral and offensive content, including the banning of VPNs, are in accordance with Shariah.”
VPN users in Pakistan have already reported significant disruptions to services since last weekend, with issues relating to connectivity and restricted access.
Pakistan’s decision to impose online restrictions have been questioned by free speech activists and businesses alike.
PREDA, Pakistan’s first membership-based organization dedicated to promoting and protecting the interests of professionals, also wrote a letter to the government earlier in the day, appealing for the adoption of stable digital policies to support growth and build an eco system for global competitiveness.

KARACHI: Over three years ago, Masood Lohar, a passionate Pakistani environmentalist, embarked on a mission to breathe new life into a desolate 220-acre landfill on Karachi’s Clifton beach. 
Today, the barren wasteland is a thriving urban forest, home to over 700,000 trees and a vibrant community of more than 140 bird species that find sanctuary in its lush greenery and an adjacent lagoon.
“This particular place was a dump site,” Lohar, 57, said as he pointed to the trees around him, the first of which he planted exactly 46 months ago. 
“We cleaned the whole mess and then we started bringing soil from outside and started this plantation.” 
Lohar’s aim for the site, called the Clifton Urban Forest, is to nurture it as a marine ecosystem, and it is already seeing some success as a home to over 100 plant species, including native mangroves, fruit trees like pomegranates and guavas, and hardy, drought-resistant grass varieties that thrive in Karachi’s harsh climate.
The aim of Lohar’s project is not just beautifying the port city of over 20 million, which often ranks in the world’s top ten most polluted cities. The main goal is to restore Karachi’s dwindling marine ecosystem and counterbalance rapid urbanization in the sprawling city where the breakneck expansion of roads and buildings means there is less and less space for trees and parkland.
In 2021, the World Bank estimated that Pakistan’s forest cover was 4.7797%. That compares with 24% in neighboring India and 14.5% in Bangladesh. Lohar believes said afforestation projects like the one he has started could help make Karachi more resilient against natural disasters and encourage wildlife to settle.
The city, home to the Malir and Lyari rivers, once boasted a network of creeks, lagoons, and estuaries, many of them destroyed or severely degraded over the decades by industrial development and unchecked urban sprawl. The Obhayo Lagoon, once the largest in the area, has all but vanished, while other water bodies have been cut off from the sea, reducing biodiversity and making the city more vulnerable to environmental hazards.
Lohar’s initiative has helped restore a fragment of this ecosystem by reviving a small portion of the Obhayo Lagoon. 
“Now you can see that it is providing the services of a lagoon,” said the environmentalist, who has documented the sightings of 140 bird species, including lesser and greater flamingos and Siberian ducks, at the Lagoon since he launched the restoration project. 
The forest is now also teeming with insects, honey bees, and native beetles, with the small creatures playing an essential role in pollination and supporting the growth of various plants and trees in the area.
Lohar’s commitment to the environment is deeply personal. A former UN program professional who worked for UNDP from 2006-2020, he witnessed and studied firsthand worsening air quality and environmental degradation in Pakistan’s urban centers. 
“I knew at that time that the time will come,” he said, referring to now record-high air pollution levels in Pakistan, particularly in cities like Lahore and Karachi. 
 “You see, the Pakistani cities at this moment are fighting for their breath because the air quality is getting worse and worse.”
Lohar wants to provide shade for residents seeking escape from rising temperatures — a heatwave in 2015 killed more than 400 people in the city in three days, and temperatures in the surrounding Sindh region reached record highs this year. 
Experts say afforestation can also provide relief from heatwaves, with the sea breeze getting hotter as it passes through concrete structures while roadways and rooftops absorb heat.
“The other problem is [seasonal] heatwaves because concrete is the dominant outlook of our cities,” Lohar said.
Urban forests like the one Lohar has created are part of the solution, he said. 
Mangroves, in particular, have proven highly effective in sequestering carbon and Lohar estimates that his urban forest, a combination of mangroves and terrestrial trees, captures 6,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually, equivalent to the emissions of nearly 1,300 cars.
Yet despite its success, Lohar’s project faces significant challenges, particularly from real estate development. 
Karachi’s rapid urbanization has increased pressure on open spaces, with developers eyeing every available inch for construction. The urban forest itself is at risk from a development project being carried out by the Karachi Development Authority (KDA), which Lohar is worried could destroy over 300,000 of the forest’s mangroves.
“I’m not sure how that will unfold in the course of time and impact this marine ecosystem project, but I’m sure that it will definitely stress this project,” Lohar said, gesturing toward a marine wall under construction. 
“I have gone through a lot of difficulties and resources-wise and the indifference of the corporate sector and the government brings us on the verge of giving up.”
Director General KDA Altaf Gohar Memon did not respond to calls seeking comment for this story. Local government minister Saeed Ghani did not respond to Arab News’ requests for comment. 
Yasir Husain, an environmentalist and founder of the Climate Action Center, said that projects like the Clifton Urban Forest were vital, though such initiatives were insufficient to address the broader environmental challenges faced by Pakistan.
“These are just [pilot projects], and the city’s challenge is enormous,” he told Arab News, adding that finding a bird sanctuary in such a stressed environment was a gratifying experience.
“These are tiny projects, if you look at it from a macro perspective of the whole city, but they’re experiments,” he continued, appreciating that urban forests were maintained despite such challenging circumstances.