CHITRAL: The inclement weather is likely to adversely impact the cereal crops of wheat and barely grown in the lower parts of Chitral valley, exposing them to fungal diseases.

Shahzad Ayub, an expert associated with agriculture department, told Dawn that unprecedented rainfall this year in the sub-valleys of Lower Chitral since the early days of March damaged the cereal crops as well as apricot, peach and cherry orchards when the trees were sprouting.

He said excessive and persistent moisture in the roots of the crops caused fungal diseases of various types, including yellow rust, and unfortunately, the area from Arandu to Koghuzi in Koh union council had been hit by heavy precipitation during the growth period.

He said low-lying fields had become waterlogged, damaging the crops extensively, and called for draining the water to minimise the damage.

Mr Ayub said incessant rains for a week had damaged the sprouting trees of apricot, peach and cherry in the villages from Arandu to Koghuzi.

He said Lower Chitral was known to be one of the best apricot producing areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and an orchard of apricot was an integral part of every household due to its economic and nutritional values.

PROTEST: The students of different government degree colleges affiliated with the University of Chitral on Tuesday boycotted classes and took out a rally against the hike in semester fee.

Later, addressing a news conference at the press club, the students gave a three-day deadline to the University of Chitral to withdraw the fee hike, or they would agitate.

The student leaders, including Khwaja Aftabuddin, Mir Baiz, Burhanuddin, Adil Khan, Riyan Khan and others, said the varsity had without any lawful authority and justification raised the semester fee beyond financial capacity of students.

They said the students were united in their stand against the ‘steep’ hike in fee, which would lead more than half of the enrolled students to discontinue their studies due to the financial burden.

They appealed to the chief minister to take notice of the ‘obnoxious’ rise in semester fee.

Published in Dawn, May 8th, 2024