CHITRAL: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan visited the flood-hit villages in Reshun area of Upper Chitral district and Golen valley in Lower Chitral district and distributed compensation cheques to affected families.

Accompanied by chief secretary Dr Kazim Niaz, relief secretary Aamer Latif and Malakand commissioner Syed Zaheerul Islam Shah, the chief minister inspected roads, bridges, water schemes and irrigation channels in the calamity-hit areas.

He told flood-affected people in Reshun area that he had visited Malakand division to get a firsthand account of the ravages of flash floods.

Mr Mahmood said the government was striving to help out the people in distress. ”Work on the infrastructure rehabilitation will begin shortly, while all relevant authorities have been directed to assess damage caused by flooding within the shortest possible time for the release of rehabilitation funds,” he said.

The chief minister said his love and passion for Chitral and its people spanned over seven years as he visited the region many times as a minister and inaugurated development projects.

He said the floods had destroyed a truckable bridge in Reshun disconnecting the area from the rest of the country, so he’d ordered the installation of a makeshift steel bridge to restore vehicular traffic.

“We will make every effort to bring Upper Chitral district on a par with the developed districts of the province. I will return soon with a special development package,” he said.

Upper Chitral DC Shah Saud briefed the chief minister about the ravages of floods in his district in the villages of Reshun, Zait, Booni, Mastuj and Yarkhoon areas and said roads, bridges, water supply schemes and irrigation channels had been affected by the calamity.

Mr Mahmood was received in Golen valley by his aide, Wazirzada.

Lower Chitral deputy commissioner Naveed Ahmad informed him about the losses caused by floods in different areas, including Kalash valley, and said Rs90 million were urgently required for infrastructure rehabilitation.

MNA from Chitral Maulana Abdul Akbar Chitrali and MPA Maulana Hidayatur Rehman were also present on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, September 6th, 2020