MANSEHRA: The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics hasn’t begun the digital housing and population census in snowbound Kaghan Valley and other parts of Mansehra district.

PBS coordinator Mohammad Ibrahim told reporters at the Balakot Press Club on Tuesday that it was the district administration to decide about when to launch the census.

“The entire population of Kaghan valley’s all 15 blocks had migrated to lower parts of the country after the snowfall began in November last year, so the census hasn’t begun there yet,” he said.

Field enumeration for the PBS’s first-ever housing and population digital census began in the country on March 1.

Mr Ibrahim said enumerators completed the first phase of listing households in Balakot tehsil before starting the second to collect the number of family members and other data.

He said as the weather turned pleasant in Jarad and Ponja areas of Balakot tehsil, the enumerators began gathering household and family data.

“The district administration will decide when to launch the digital census in snowbound areas, including Kaghan valley, which is still buried under six-seven feet of snow,” he said.

The coordinator said enumerators reached people after covering long distances in difficult terrains on foot, so the latter should provide the latter with the sought-after information correctly.

Meanwhile, deputy commissioner Bilal Shahid Rao said over 75 per cent people of the district knew how to read and write and wanted to see their children get quality education.

During the launch of a private educational institution in Balakot, Mr Rao said it was encouraging to see the people of Balakot stand on their feet after bravely facing challenges posed by the 2005 earthquake’s destruction.

KILLED: Two people, including a minor boy, were killed in separate incidents here on Tuesday.

Mohammad Bilal, 5, drowned in a stream of Shinkiari area while swimming. The locals recovered him from the deep water and shifted him to a nearby hospital but the doctors declared him dead.

Meanwhile, a body was found on the bank of the Kunhar River in Sungar Debrian area of Balakot tehsil. The deceased was identified as Noorur Rehman with the family saying he stepped out for an important piece of work but didn’t return.

Published in Dawn, March 15th, 2023