CHITRAL: The flood-affected residents of Orghoch village have threatened to block Peshawar Road if government fails to extend help to them. The villagers held a protest demonstration outside Chitral Press Club on Wednesday and set a one week deadline for the government to compensate them. They threatened to block Peshawar Road if government didn’t extend help to them.

The affected villagers said that 10 were completely washed away by the flood in the village. They said that they were living under the open sky.

They said that the village was also hit by flood last year but not a single penny was spent in their village and no protection wall was constructed to protect it from flood.

Meanwhile, arrangements have been finalised for three-day Baroghil festival that will start on August 22 under the auspices of army and Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The festival showcases different aspects of the ancient and unique Wakhi culture. Yak race and yak polo are the major and interesting events of the festival. Other events of the festival include buzkashi, polo, donkey polo and several local games.

Baroghil is home of Chiantar glacier and surrounded by many other glaciers, which feed the Chitral River, while the Qarambar Lake is said to be biologically active lake supporting a wide range of diversity.

MEETING: The members of district zoonotic control committee (DZCC) here on Wednesday termed inclusion of local support organisations (LSOs) in the committee supportive for attaining the goal of sustainability of the efforts to check zoonosis.

In the monthly meeting of the committee held here with DHO Dr Israrullah in the chair, the participants said that LSOs acted like artery of a human body in the length and breadth of Chitral working in all sectors of development.

Constituted by Relief International (RI) as part of its effort to fight zoonosis, DZCC consisted of all stakeholders to review on monthly basis the arrangements and measures for checking zoonotic diseases in Chitral.

RI district project manager Dr Mohammad Tayyeb said that his organisation had already taken measures to educate people about deadly zoonotic diseases.

Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2014