Kaghan valley receives first snowfall of season

MANSEHRA: The Kaghan valley on Sunday received the first snowfall of the season amid concerns of the dwellers about early return of the winter.

The snowfall, which started early in the morning, continued sporadically throughout the day. The early snowfall also forced the nomads and local settlers to shift to lower parts of Mansehra district where they would stay for about six months. The people in Battakundi and Gattidas area of the valley had already harvested the potatoes and peas crops, expecting the snowfall in the valley and now started moving out of the area to spend almost five to six months in lower parts of the district. One Zeeshan Adil said that though the weather had turned chilly following the season’s first snowfall, Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road was still open to traffic. He said that though the hustle and bustle in Kaghan valley mostly ends at the last week of August, the visitors still throng the tourists spot till mid October. “If the ongoing snowfall continues for a day or more, it may trigger closure of the road to upper parts of the valley,” said Adil.