MINGORA: The picturesque Marghazar valley has emerged as a major tourist destination in Swat valley with thousands of tourists visiting it every year.

Besides spectacular locations, greenery and serene environment, the valley located around 12km from Mingora city is known for walnut cultivation as well.

Also, there’s historical White Palace constructed with white marble used in Taj Mehal of Agra, India.

“I came here with family to see the White Palace constructed by Swat state ruler Miangul Abdul Wadood Bacha sahib in 1941. Not only is the building a architectural landmark but also its location is so serene and scenic that one wants to stay there for months,” said Abdul Kabir, a tourist from Lahore.

He said the valley offered delicious and high-quality walnuts for low price.

The tourist said he had bought walnuts for family and friends in large quantity.

“Walnuts cultivated here have better quality and are lower in price compared with those grown in other parts of Swat,” said Amjad Ali, a resident of Mingora.

Amjad Ali, a councillor of Spal Bandai village council, said walnuts cultivated in Marghazar valley were of high quality and bigger in size besides being tasty.

“Apart from very own walnuts, we also have walnuts of very good quality known as American Walnuts reportedly introduced by the local royal family,” he said.

The councillor said walnuts were mainly used as a gift by locals and tourists.

The Marghazar Bazaar has five vendors selling local walnuts.

They’re happy to see tourists flock the valley in the summer season. “I restlessly wait for the summer season as scores of tourists come over and purchase local walnuts. Some people buy them as a special gift, while others purchase them as a medicinal product. In the season, I earn Rs1,000 daily on average,” said vendor Umar Hayat.

Dr. Adalat Khan, a plant protection specialist at the Swat agriculture extension department, said the district had over 90,000 walnut trees, whose produce was a major source of livelihood for local smalltime farmers.

“Swat contributes around 30 percent of walnuts produced in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. A majority of households own two to four trees and thus, earning good sum of money annually,” he said, adding that a mature tree could produce 70-200kg walnuts.

According to health experts, walnuts are rich in nutrition and its benefits range from metabolism to heart health and beauty.

They told Dawn walnut helped loss weight, induced sleep, was good for hair, prevented heart diseases and diabetes, boosted sperm quality, made skin glow, prevented pancreatic cancer, reduced breast cancer chance, fought stress and was good for pregnant women.

Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2016