KHOST CITY - Hundreds of people have been earning money by removing pine nuts from pine cones in southeastern Khost province.
Pine nuts in southeastern parts of the country are brought to Khost province during fall season because weather is warm in Khost.
The pine nut cones are unloaded at an open ground west of the Administrative Complex in Khost City to dry them up under the sun that separates cones and pine seeds.
Hundreds of poor women, men and children are engaged collecting the empty cones for heating their homes in winter.
They take the empty cones home against the day long work to separate nuts from cones.
Yusuf, 27, who works to separate pine nuts from cones, said he arrived at work in the morning and left at 5pm in the evening.
“We collect cones to use them as fuel. We use them to heat up our homes in winter,” he said.
Samiullah, 21, is another man who collects pine nuts cones in the ground for use in winter as fuel.
He hoped by collecting cones he would be able to protect his family from harsh winter.
“We don’t have money to purchase wood in winter, so we burn pine nuts,” he said.
Haji Khaluddin, a businessman, who brought 70,000 pine nut cones for pealing, said around 30 people, including women and children, were busy with him separating pine nuts from cones.
He said this year 52 kilograms of pine nuts would cost 125,000 afghanis but the rate was going down with each passing day.
President Ashraf Ghani through a special decree has banned the smuggling of pine nuts out of the country and has directed security forces to seize smuggled items and refer the smuggler to law enforcing authorities. (Pajhwok)