CHITRAL: A three-day snow sports festival started in Madak Lusht village in the southwest of Chitral bordering the Kalam valley of Swat the other day.

The event is being held by Hindukush Snow Sports Club with the assistance of the district government in which local youth are taking part in skiing.

Players from the adjoining Dir and Swat districts as well as Gilgit-Baltistan were invited, but their participation was cancelled due to heavy snowfall.

The president of the club, Shahzada Ihtesham said the village situated at more than 9,500 feet height had been the hub of snow sports since long. He said the area’s topography and the amount of snow it received made it ideal for snow sports.

The festival was inaugurated by district nazim Maghfirat Shah on Friday. On the occasion, he said the snow games were not new to the people of most of the valleys of Chitral. He said the district government had a comprehensive plan for promotion of winter games to attract tourists.

MPA’S INDUCTION IN CABINET SOUGHT: The elders of Kalash valleys of Bumburate, Birir and Rumbur have demanded of Prime Minister Imran Khan to induct MPA Wazir Zada in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet to enable him to work for reducing poverty in the backward region.

Elders from both the Muslim and Kalash communities made the demand at a meeting in Bumburate valley. They said the PTI had done a great favour to the people of the backward area by nominating a young man from the valley for the provincial assembly seat. They said Chitral, especially the Kalash valleys, were far behind in development and the 2015 flash floods had washed away its physical infrastructure.

The elders said the natural beauty of the valleys could be restored by taking concrete steps to make it resilient against flash floods in future side by side restoring the infrastructure.

They said a large population of Kalash lived below poverty line and a comprehensive package for their uplift was need of the hour. In this situation, they said a cabinet member from the valley could play a significant role in the area’s development.

Published in Dawn, February 17th, 2019