Report Zahiruddin, Chitral
Participants of a workshop on Friday stressed the need for putting in place disaster risk management plans at provincial and municipal levels.
The workshop on formulating district disaster management plan was organised by the Pakistan chapter of the Focus Humanitarian Assistance, an international group of agencies established to complement the provision of emergency relief, and was attended by representatives of different civil society organisations.
The participants called for ‘disaster conscious’ approach and taking concrete steps so that in future the loss of life and property in natural disasters could be reduced.
They said that due to its location and topography, Chital was more vulnerable to natural disasters. Landslides and erosion, snow and avalanches, glacier bursts and flash floods posed threat to the area, they said.
Over the years, they said, the frequency of natural disasters had increased causing colossal losses in the area and rendering hundreds of people homeless.
Those who spoke at the workshop included Chitral DCO Mutasim Billah Shah, regional programme manager of Focus Amir Mohammad, programme officer Wali Mohammad and Dr Mir Afzal Tajik.
They said government agencies, NGOs and civil society organisations needed to make concrete and integrated efforts where every one had a defined role to play at the time of disaster.
They said areas in the district vulnerable to disasters should be identified and measures be taken to minimise damages during disasters.
The participants also called for an early warning system and informing people on time.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Position holders get cash awards
Repor Zahiruddin, Chitral
The position holders of matriculation examination 2008 held by the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education Peshawar were awarded cash prizes of Rs25,000, Rs15,000 and Rs10,000 respectively for standing first, second and third in the district by eminent religious leader Qari Faizullah, the administrator of Madressa Imam Mohammad Karachi here on Friday.
Former MPA from Chitral Maulana Mohammad Jahangir Khan was chief guest on the occasion who hailed the efforts of Qari Faizullah to encourage modern education by awarding scholarships to the position holders every year for the last five years. He said there is no clash between the modern and religious education while certain elements are out to create a gap between the two.
Khateeb of Shahi Masjid Chitral Maulana Khaleequz Zaman said the scholarship by Qari Faizullah had induced competition among the students in the district who strive hard to obtain it. He said separate merit lists were prepared for the students of private and public sector schools.
Those who got the scholarships were Khadija Hina Mastoor, Siddiqullah, Farzana, Umm-i-Habiba, Ihteshamul Haq and Khuzaifa.
The position holders of matriculation examination 2008 held by the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education Peshawar were awarded cash prizes of Rs25,000, Rs15,000 and Rs10,000 respectively for standing first, second and third in the district by eminent religious leader Qari Faizullah, the administrator of Madressa Imam Mohammad Karachi here on Friday.
Former MPA from Chitral Maulana Mohammad Jahangir Khan was chief guest on the occasion who hailed the efforts of Qari Faizullah to encourage modern education by awarding scholarships to the position holders every year for the last five years. He said there is no clash between the modern and religious education while certain elements are out to create a gap between the two.
Khateeb of Shahi Masjid Chitral Maulana Khaleequz Zaman said the scholarship by Qari Faizullah had induced competition among the students in the district who strive hard to obtain it. He said separate merit lists were prepared for the students of private and public sector schools.
Those who got the scholarships were Khadija Hina Mastoor, Siddiqullah, Farzana, Umm-i-Habiba, Ihteshamul Haq and Khuzaifa.
Chitral's peace to be maintained
Report Zahiruddin, Chitral
District Nazim Chitral Maghfirat Shah has said the district government is high alert to its duty of maintaining the peaceful and tranquil atmosphere of Chitral and effective steps have been taken to abort any attempt of infiltration of miscreants into the district.
Presiding over a meeting of the heads of various political parties, civil society organizations and heads of offices of various government departments in connection with maintenance of peace and order in the district, he said the support of the people must be enlisted who have basic role to play in coping with the elements who create anarchy in society.
He eulogized the role of the local people and said they love and cherish peace in their area and are prepared to pay any value to uphold it. He said that there is no imminent danger to peace in the district as there is complete harmony among different sections of the society and political parties.
DPO Sher Akbar briefed the participants about the measures taken to keep close watch on the movement of miscreants while DCO Mutasim Billah Shah and commandant of Chitral Scouts Col Sohail were also present.
District Nazim Chitral Maghfirat Shah has said the district government is high alert to its duty of maintaining the peaceful and tranquil atmosphere of Chitral and effective steps have been taken to abort any attempt of infiltration of miscreants into the district.
Presiding over a meeting of the heads of various political parties, civil society organizations and heads of offices of various government departments in connection with maintenance of peace and order in the district, he said the support of the people must be enlisted who have basic role to play in coping with the elements who create anarchy in society.
He eulogized the role of the local people and said they love and cherish peace in their area and are prepared to pay any value to uphold it. He said that there is no imminent danger to peace in the district as there is complete harmony among different sections of the society and political parties.
DPO Sher Akbar briefed the participants about the measures taken to keep close watch on the movement of miscreants while DCO Mutasim Billah Shah and commandant of Chitral Scouts Col Sohail were also present.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Chitral forest a `windfall' for timber mafia
By Zar Alam Khan
ISLAMABAD: The timber mafia in NWFP has wreaked havoc on the forest of Chitral by illegally felling green trees and smuggling them to other parts of the country. However, the government has failed to take action against the network despite initiating investigations through the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
Chitral's mostly deodar forest spreads over 120,000 acres out of which 100,000 acres are commercial and the remaining 20,000 acres non-commercial. Under the law, trees can be cut down after being marked by the government for domestic use or export to other districts. The forest area stretching from Lowari to Ayun has already been under stress due to excessive cutting for use as firewood.
A total of five million trees were cut down after marking from 1967 to 1997, while clandestine cutting and smuggling also continued during the period. A large-scale marking of trees was carried out during 1990-91 but soon a ban was imposed after objections raised by environmental agencies and the public mostly from the subdivision of Mastuj who heavily depend on the forest of lower Chitral for firewood and construction purposes.
However, the timber mafia remained active and in 2005-06 succeeded in persuading the government to restart marking, saying if the ‘windfall’ trees and those affected by heavy snowfall and rains were not marked for cutting, they could catch fire and destroy the whole forest!
As a result, the government sanctioned marking and the timber mafia initiated the process from Rumbur valley after entering into a dubious deal with the elders of the area under which the forest owners would get Rs30 per foot. Soon, 700,000 trees were marked for cutting in the small valley after showing them `windfall’. However, on public complaints, an inquiry was initiated which found that out of the 700,000 trees marked, a whopping 500,000 were green and healthy saplings.
Though the government once again stopped the process but no action was taken against those who had marked green trees for cutting.
Later, the youth of the area did not even allow chopping of the remaining 200,000 marked trees demanding payment at the market rate. Similarly, 200,000 trees were marked in the Birir and 600,000 in the Shishy valleys. Locals say widespread irregularities have been committed in the marking of trees in these valleys too.
Sources in the forest department said the mafia bought the trees at the rate of Rs30 per foot from the locals and smuggle it to other district where it fetched Rs3,000 per foot.
"Billions of rupees are involved in the illegal trade and forest department officials from top to bottom are involved in the scam."
Chitrali officials in the forest department told Dawn that the timber mafia has been looting the forest resources of the district with impunity by keeping the local officials and the residents at bay.
They said with the abolition of the state Chitral’s forest came under the administrative control of the provincial government on January 1, 1971. Giving one example of how the locals have been kept out of the decision-making process in the department, they said all key posts in the district forest department were given to outsiders. To make sure that no Chitrali got a responsible job in the department, the doors for admission to the only Forest College of the country in Peshawar have been closed on the Chitrali students. A few students who took admission to the college on a self-finance basis were denied jobs in the department lest they could expose the wrongdoings.
In a letter to the President on behalf of the residents of Arandu Lasht, one Mohammad Ali Khan complained about the indiscriminate cutting of forest in Arandu Gol, Damel and Langorbat.
He said the smuggling of timber to Afghanistan and Upper Dir areas continued under the nose of the customs officials. He said the mafia got 140,000 feet of wood chopped down in Arandu Gol alone and later claimed that they had confiscated 55,000 cubic feet of wood in order to avoid payment of royalty amounting to millions of rupees to the locals. But strangely, neither the accused were identified nor any investigation ordered.
The locals regretted that on the one hand the government had put in place strict rules for movement of timber within the valley and on the other given a free hand to the mafia to smuggle it out of the district.
ISLAMABAD: The timber mafia in NWFP has wreaked havoc on the forest of Chitral by illegally felling green trees and smuggling them to other parts of the country. However, the government has failed to take action against the network despite initiating investigations through the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
Chitral's mostly deodar forest spreads over 120,000 acres out of which 100,000 acres are commercial and the remaining 20,000 acres non-commercial. Under the law, trees can be cut down after being marked by the government for domestic use or export to other districts. The forest area stretching from Lowari to Ayun has already been under stress due to excessive cutting for use as firewood.
A total of five million trees were cut down after marking from 1967 to 1997, while clandestine cutting and smuggling also continued during the period. A large-scale marking of trees was carried out during 1990-91 but soon a ban was imposed after objections raised by environmental agencies and the public mostly from the subdivision of Mastuj who heavily depend on the forest of lower Chitral for firewood and construction purposes.
However, the timber mafia remained active and in 2005-06 succeeded in persuading the government to restart marking, saying if the ‘windfall’ trees and those affected by heavy snowfall and rains were not marked for cutting, they could catch fire and destroy the whole forest!
As a result, the government sanctioned marking and the timber mafia initiated the process from Rumbur valley after entering into a dubious deal with the elders of the area under which the forest owners would get Rs30 per foot. Soon, 700,000 trees were marked for cutting in the small valley after showing them `windfall’. However, on public complaints, an inquiry was initiated which found that out of the 700,000 trees marked, a whopping 500,000 were green and healthy saplings.
Though the government once again stopped the process but no action was taken against those who had marked green trees for cutting.
Later, the youth of the area did not even allow chopping of the remaining 200,000 marked trees demanding payment at the market rate. Similarly, 200,000 trees were marked in the Birir and 600,000 in the Shishy valleys. Locals say widespread irregularities have been committed in the marking of trees in these valleys too.
Sources in the forest department said the mafia bought the trees at the rate of Rs30 per foot from the locals and smuggle it to other district where it fetched Rs3,000 per foot.
"Billions of rupees are involved in the illegal trade and forest department officials from top to bottom are involved in the scam."
Chitrali officials in the forest department told Dawn that the timber mafia has been looting the forest resources of the district with impunity by keeping the local officials and the residents at bay.
They said with the abolition of the state Chitral’s forest came under the administrative control of the provincial government on January 1, 1971. Giving one example of how the locals have been kept out of the decision-making process in the department, they said all key posts in the district forest department were given to outsiders. To make sure that no Chitrali got a responsible job in the department, the doors for admission to the only Forest College of the country in Peshawar have been closed on the Chitrali students. A few students who took admission to the college on a self-finance basis were denied jobs in the department lest they could expose the wrongdoings.
In a letter to the President on behalf of the residents of Arandu Lasht, one Mohammad Ali Khan complained about the indiscriminate cutting of forest in Arandu Gol, Damel and Langorbat.
He said the smuggling of timber to Afghanistan and Upper Dir areas continued under the nose of the customs officials. He said the mafia got 140,000 feet of wood chopped down in Arandu Gol alone and later claimed that they had confiscated 55,000 cubic feet of wood in order to avoid payment of royalty amounting to millions of rupees to the locals. But strangely, neither the accused were identified nor any investigation ordered.
The locals regretted that on the one hand the government had put in place strict rules for movement of timber within the valley and on the other given a free hand to the mafia to smuggle it out of the district.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Accord signed for Kalash valley uplift
Report Zahiruddin, Chitral
The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and Ayun Valleys Development Programme (AVDP) signed an agreement on Monday for the development of the Bumburate, Rumboor and Birir areas of Kalash valley.
According to the terms of partnership (ToP) of the project, it is meant to bring the area at par with other parts of the district and create job opportunities for the poverty-stricken Kalash people. The project will encompass all the sectors of development like health, education, communication, agriculture, environment and tourism but without jeopardising the cultural entity of the Kalash people who possess a unique culture.
SDC regional coordinator Khalid Hussain and AVDP chairman Rehmat Ilahi inked the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations while regional programme manager of Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) Engineer Sardar Ayub was also present on the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Hussain and Mr Ayub said that AVDP was the first ever organisation in the district which was entrusted to carry out development activities on such a large scale.
They said that Kalash people were suffering from abject poverty on one hand and the preservation of their culture and traditions was another challenge. They said that the project would ensure sustainable development of the Kalash valley and help raise the standard of life of the people.
They said that Birir would be made a model valley and it was selected due to its backwardness and the fact that Kalash culture was present in its original form in this valley.
They said that the forests in the valley would be protected. For the promotion of tourism in the area, special initiatives would be launched to provide fabulous opportunities of self-employment to the people in the valley, they said.
The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and Ayun Valleys Development Programme (AVDP) signed an agreement on Monday for the development of the Bumburate, Rumboor and Birir areas of Kalash valley.
According to the terms of partnership (ToP) of the project, it is meant to bring the area at par with other parts of the district and create job opportunities for the poverty-stricken Kalash people. The project will encompass all the sectors of development like health, education, communication, agriculture, environment and tourism but without jeopardising the cultural entity of the Kalash people who possess a unique culture.
SDC regional coordinator Khalid Hussain and AVDP chairman Rehmat Ilahi inked the agreement on behalf of their respective organisations while regional programme manager of Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) Engineer Sardar Ayub was also present on the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Hussain and Mr Ayub said that AVDP was the first ever organisation in the district which was entrusted to carry out development activities on such a large scale.
They said that Kalash people were suffering from abject poverty on one hand and the preservation of their culture and traditions was another challenge. They said that the project would ensure sustainable development of the Kalash valley and help raise the standard of life of the people.
They said that Birir would be made a model valley and it was selected due to its backwardness and the fact that Kalash culture was present in its original form in this valley.
They said that the forests in the valley would be protected. For the promotion of tourism in the area, special initiatives would be launched to provide fabulous opportunities of self-employment to the people in the valley, they said.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Lowari tunnel digging to complete by December
Report Zahiruddin, Chitral
Digging for the 8,600-metre long Lowari Rail Tunnel will be completed by the first week of December this year, an official source said. So far, he added, 7,152 metres drilling has been completed.
The source said that work was in full swing and 4,032 metres of digging had been completed on the Dir side (south portal), while 3,120 metres of digging had been completed on the Chitral side (north portal).
He said that the second phase of the project was laying of railway track and electrification, which would commence from the first month of the next year, while a two-kilometer long approach tunnel on Chitral side would also be constructed to provide all-weather access to the tunnel during the winter season.
The source said that the project would be opened to the public by the end of 2009. Regarding the importance of the project, he said that inaugurated by President Pervez Musharraf on July 8, 2006, the project ranked fifth out of the 20 mega projects initiated by the government in the country, which provide all-weather route linkage to the district with the rest of the country during the winter season.
During winter, Chitral district becomes inaccessible, when the Lowari Pass (10,500 ft) receives heavy snow and closes for four months and the residents are virtually imprisoned within the boundaries of the district.
The tunnel will reportedly reduce the current 14-hour drive from Chitral to Peshawar by half. The width of the tunnel is 7.5 metres, while its height is 7 metres and the cost of the project is 8 billion rupees ($133 million), the source said.
After completion, the tunnel will also provide road link to the Central Asian state of Tajikistan via Wakhan corridor of Afghanistan. Feasibility study on the project was carried out by the government in 1955 and work on it was started by the Frontier Works Organisation in 1974, which was later stopped by Gen Ziaul Haq.
Presently, the construction work has been assigned to a Korean company, Sambu and the National Highway Authority is the executing agency. The people of Chitral are attaching great importance to the project which, they hoped, will bring about progress and prosperity in the backward area.
Digging for the 8,600-metre long Lowari Rail Tunnel will be completed by the first week of December this year, an official source said. So far, he added, 7,152 metres drilling has been completed.
The source said that work was in full swing and 4,032 metres of digging had been completed on the Dir side (south portal), while 3,120 metres of digging had been completed on the Chitral side (north portal).
He said that the second phase of the project was laying of railway track and electrification, which would commence from the first month of the next year, while a two-kilometer long approach tunnel on Chitral side would also be constructed to provide all-weather access to the tunnel during the winter season.
The source said that the project would be opened to the public by the end of 2009. Regarding the importance of the project, he said that inaugurated by President Pervez Musharraf on July 8, 2006, the project ranked fifth out of the 20 mega projects initiated by the government in the country, which provide all-weather route linkage to the district with the rest of the country during the winter season.
During winter, Chitral district becomes inaccessible, when the Lowari Pass (10,500 ft) receives heavy snow and closes for four months and the residents are virtually imprisoned within the boundaries of the district.
The tunnel will reportedly reduce the current 14-hour drive from Chitral to Peshawar by half. The width of the tunnel is 7.5 metres, while its height is 7 metres and the cost of the project is 8 billion rupees ($133 million), the source said.
After completion, the tunnel will also provide road link to the Central Asian state of Tajikistan via Wakhan corridor of Afghanistan. Feasibility study on the project was carried out by the government in 1955 and work on it was started by the Frontier Works Organisation in 1974, which was later stopped by Gen Ziaul Haq.
Presently, the construction work has been assigned to a Korean company, Sambu and the National Highway Authority is the executing agency. The people of Chitral are attaching great importance to the project which, they hoped, will bring about progress and prosperity in the backward area.
Lowari tunnel digging to complete by December
Report Zahiruddin, Chitral
Digging for the 8,600-metre long Lowari Rail Tunnel will be completed by the first week of December this year, an official source said. So far, he added, 7,152 metres drilling has been completed.
The source said that work was in full swing and 4,032 metres of digging had been completed on the Dir side (south portal), while 3,120 metres of digging had been completed on the Chitral side (north portal).
He said that the second phase of the project was laying of railway track and electrification, which would commence from the first month of the next year, while a two-kilometer long approach tunnel on Chitral side would also be constructed to provide all-weather access to the tunnel during the winter season.
The source said that the project would be opened to the public by the end of 2009. Regarding the importance of the project, he said that inaugurated by President Pervez Musharraf on July 8, 2006, the project ranked fifth out of the 20 mega projects initiated by the government in the country, which provide all-weather route linkage to the district with the rest of the country during the winter season.
During winter, Chitral district becomes inaccessible, when the Lowari Pass (10,500 ft) receives heavy snow and closes for four months and the residents are virtually imprisoned within the boundaries of the district.
The tunnel will reportedly reduce the current 14-hour drive from Chitral to Peshawar by half. The width of the tunnel is 7.5 metres, while its height is 7 metres and the cost of the project is 8 billion rupees ($133 million), the source said.
After completion, the tunnel will also provide road link to the Central Asian state of Tajikistan via Wakhan corridor of Afghanistan. Feasibility study on the project was carried out by the government in 1955 and work on it was started by the Frontier Works Organisation in 1974, which was later stopped by Gen Ziaul Haq.
Presently, the construction work has been assigned to a Korean company, Sambu and the National Highway Authority is the executing agency. The people of Chitral are attaching great importance to the project which, they hoped, will bring about progress and prosperity in the backward area.
Digging for the 8,600-metre long Lowari Rail Tunnel will be completed by the first week of December this year, an official source said. So far, he added, 7,152 metres drilling has been completed.
The source said that work was in full swing and 4,032 metres of digging had been completed on the Dir side (south portal), while 3,120 metres of digging had been completed on the Chitral side (north portal).
He said that the second phase of the project was laying of railway track and electrification, which would commence from the first month of the next year, while a two-kilometer long approach tunnel on Chitral side would also be constructed to provide all-weather access to the tunnel during the winter season.
The source said that the project would be opened to the public by the end of 2009. Regarding the importance of the project, he said that inaugurated by President Pervez Musharraf on July 8, 2006, the project ranked fifth out of the 20 mega projects initiated by the government in the country, which provide all-weather route linkage to the district with the rest of the country during the winter season.
During winter, Chitral district becomes inaccessible, when the Lowari Pass (10,500 ft) receives heavy snow and closes for four months and the residents are virtually imprisoned within the boundaries of the district.
The tunnel will reportedly reduce the current 14-hour drive from Chitral to Peshawar by half. The width of the tunnel is 7.5 metres, while its height is 7 metres and the cost of the project is 8 billion rupees ($133 million), the source said.
After completion, the tunnel will also provide road link to the Central Asian state of Tajikistan via Wakhan corridor of Afghanistan. Feasibility study on the project was carried out by the government in 1955 and work on it was started by the Frontier Works Organisation in 1974, which was later stopped by Gen Ziaul Haq.
Presently, the construction work has been assigned to a Korean company, Sambu and the National Highway Authority is the executing agency. The people of Chitral are attaching great importance to the project which, they hoped, will bring about progress and prosperity in the backward area.
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Awesome and rugged
Beauty of Chitral
Kishmanja, a beautiful village in Yarkhun valley
Lush green
DIZG: threatened by floods
The legendary village of Ayun in Chitral
On way to Bumburet
Dizg, Yarkhun
About Me
- Zar Alam Khan Razakhel
- Village Dizg, Yarkhun valley, Chitral, Pakistan
- I blog at http://chitraltoday.net (ChitralToday) about Chitral, its people, culture, traditions and issues. I have been writing about Chitral since 2000. Chitral is a scenic valley in the extreme north-west of Pakistan.