Environmental ruin

The once straggly Chinar, towering pine and deodar trees, various kinds of fruit orchards and the lush green pastures and grasslands of Chitral now paint a picture of gloom owing to the frequent devastating glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) that have occurred in parts of the region. It is Chitral’s depleting forest cover that has majorly contributed to the speedy melting of glaciers. The Chitral River fed by these melting glaciers has for some time now been making inroads by breaking through the embankments and eroding the lands and infrastructure lying in close proximity to the river bank. This erosion has not only deprived Chitral of its greenery but has also added to the miseries of the residents – many link roads and communication bridges have been lost to these floods.

The only way out of this precarious situation is taking drastic measures to preserve the region’s forest cover and plant as many trees as can be planted on a war footing. However, the government cannot alone shoulder the herculean afforestation campaign and will have to include the local community for the venture to be successful.

Khalid Pervaiz Raza

Chitral