Kumrat Festival attracts tourists from various parts of country

DIR UPPER: The three-day Kumrat Summer Festival has attracted tourists from various parts of the country to the charming and picturesque Kumrat valley.

The scenic valley is famous for tourist spots and beautiful lake, which is on a five hours drive and some 75 kilometers away from Upper Dir town. Thousands of tourists visit the area in summer to enjoy natural beauty.

The Faqir Welfare Organisation, a non-government organisation, had organised the Kumrat Summer Festival 2016. The event was arranged in collaboration with the district government and district administration. The three-day festival started on September 23 and concluded on September 25.

The aim was to attract the tourists from across the country and explore and promote tourism in Kumrat valley. It is one of the best tourists spot in the world, where the tourists can enjoy the cold weather in hot summer.

The Kumrat Valley is a unique tourists spot in the country, where the people can enjoy cold water, thick forests, hilly and plain areas at one place. Muhammad Abbas, from Hazara division told The News that it was unique valley and different from other tourists spots including Murree and Kalam. “I am here for the first time and enjoying a lot. I would tell others when I go back,” he said.

Abbas said the people of Thal Kohistan and Kumrat valley are very hospitable and cooperative. Both the local teams and tourists are taking part in the games being played in the Kumrat Festival, including cricket, volley ball and horse race, etc.

Upper Dir District Nazim, Sahibzada Faseehullah, Thal Kohistan Tehsil Nazim, Lajbar Khan Kohistani, Yahya Faqir and others attended the festival. They distributed shields among the winning players.

During the festival, the tourists also visited the scenic and beautiful area called Jahaz Banda, which is a four hours track from the valley. For Jahaz Banda you have to leave main Kumrat road from Darwaza and enter Lamoti village than move to Jandrai village. From Jandrai the tourists then use the straight and hard track till Jahaz Banda in the scenic hills.

Some tourists used to visit the Kala Chashma of the cold and sweet water. Locals said that there is no stomach problem after drinking the water of Kala Chashma. The water is not black, but the locals called it Kala Chashma as there are big black stones around it.

There are two big lakes on top of the mountain called Kotal Lake and Shahzor Lake. Thought the routes are difficult to these lakes, tourists visit the places in July and August due to eye-catching sceneries some. 

Yahya Faqir, chairman of Faqir Welfare Organisation, said that the organisation was organising the festival for the third time through own efforts. He said the basic aim of the festival was to explore the most beautiful and scenic valley to the people and world. He said that besides the Dir districts, tourists from Karachi, Hazara division, Peshawar and Lahore also participated in large number in the festival.

However, he expressed his concern that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Department even after his requests, didn’t cooperate and participated in the festival, which was a matter of grave concern.

Yahya Faqir said that he had submitted three to four proposals with the KP Tourism Department to promote tourism in the valley and even after the approval of the chief minister, the additional chief secretary withheld the proposals due to unknown reasons.

During the visit, the people and nazims of Kumrat and Thal Kohistan requested journalists to highlight their guanine problems about education, health and roads.

The Tehsil Thal nazim, Lajbar Khan said that there was one Basic Health Unit but no doctor and medicines. He said there were two boys schools in Kumrat, but the teachers didn’t perfume duty.

 Unlike Kalam region of Swat valley, Kumrat is covered with lush green pastures, snow clad mountains, gushing river Panjkora, mesmeric foggy mounds and romantic forests are ever alluring attractions of the region, but the dilapidated condition of the road and ignorance of the Tourism Department the people avoid visiting this place.

Though the valley remained peaceful even militancy was in peak in Malakand division, the local administration have provided security to the festival and tourists.