Peshawar, Jan 19, 2026: The government has initiated action to confiscate approximately 1.4 million cubic feet (CFT) of illegally felled timber allegedly held by timber mafia groups in Arandu Gol, Lower Chitral.
The government plans to distribute the proceeds transparently among local residents and fund major development projects in the area.
According to official sources, the government’s policy is clear: illicit timber will be confiscated outright, with no role or benefit for the timber mafia. The seized timber is to be sold at prevailing market rates, and the resulting royalty proceeds will be distributed equitably among the residents of Arandu Gol.
In addition, the government plans to launch development schemes worth billions of rupees through a dedicated account to be managed under the deputy commissioner (DC) Lower Chitral.
Officials and local representatives allege that timber mafia groups have long exploited the region by entering into agreements that fix timber prices at as low as Rs 350 per CFT for locals, while selling the same timber in markets for Rs 8,000 to Rs 12,000 per CFT. The large price differential, they claim, has been pocketed by financiers based in Swat and commission agents in Chitral, along with a small group of local intermediaries.
Critics describe the practice as a form of daylight robbery, arguing that poor residents, many of whom struggle to meet basic living needs, have been deprived of their rightful share of forest wealth. Arandu Gol and surrounding areas reportedly suffer from some of the worst Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) indicators in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, despite the vast economic value of their natural resources.
Environmental and governance activists state that since 2000, illegal logging networks operating from Dir (Barawal), Bajaur, Mohmand and Peshawar have been involved in systematic deforestation in Chitral. As a result, an estimated 35% of forest cover—valued at over Rs 100 billion in today’s terms—has been lost, with nearly 90% of the financial gains allegedly flowing to individuals outside Chitral.
Local leader Shahzada Iftikharuddin has emphasized that residents are not opposing the sale of timber itself, but are demanding that sale proceeds be calculated at actual market rates and paid directly to the people of Arandu Gol, rather than being fixed at what he terms “artificially suppressed rates” influenced by mafia lobbying.
Related:
Chitral’s forest a ‘windfall’ for timber mafia.
Chitral timber mafia making hay out of govt’s ‘windfall policy’.