UPPER DIR: Mountainous areas including Lowari Top, Kumrat, Thal, Kalkot, Doog Dara and others in Upper Dir on Tuesday have received first and heavy snowfall of the season while the plains received rain after which weather has become chilly.
The snowfall in Lowari Top and other areas started on the night between Monday and Tuesday and continued all the day on Tuesday.
According to local and tunnel sources the Lowari Top had received from two and a half to three feet snow. Kumrat has also received up to two feet snow and other mountainous areas received up to one and a half feet and the met office in Upper Dir said that Dir had received 13 millimeters rain that was still continued till compiling of this news.
Due to heavy snowfall Lowari Top Road was closed for vehicular traffic owing to which dozens of passenger’s vehicles and hundreds of passengers have stranded in Panakot. They were waiting of granting the permission to go to Chitral via Lowari tunnel.
The district administration of the Upper Dir had established a tent village, a dispensary and other arrangements for the Chitrali passengers in Panakot, the stoppage point of the Chitrali vehicles. Passengers appreciated the efforts of the district administration of the Upper Dir.
The Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Upper Dir Muhammad Usman Mehsud and Faheedullah Khan, Additional Assistant Commissioner Revenue (AACR) and the focal person of the district administration, visited the tent village early morning and checked the arrangements. The DC went to Al-Jazeera hotel and also checked food items and pricelist. Mehsud while talking to media persons in Panakot said that he had visited the tent village and also checked the food that were prepared in Al-Jazeera hotel. He said that the district administration had made proper arrangements for the Chitrali passengers and set up the tent village, dispensary and provided an ambulance vehicle which would be present there round the clock for any emergency.
Meanwhile, the Chitrali passengers came out to road and blocked the Dir-Chitral Road to traffic. Faheedullah Khan requested them to open the road for local vehicles. However the Chitrali passengers presented with The AACR with misbehavior manner and denied from opening the road for local vehicles.
The local transporters were also requesting them to let them go however the Chitrali passengers started beating of vehicles with stones, sticks and with hands and broke mirrors of some vehicles after which quarrel between Chitrali and local transporters took place. Patrolling police and levies personnel opened fire in the air for dispersing the protesters and locals. After which more police and levies forces have been called to handle the situation.
Faheedullah told this correspondent on phone that they had coordinated with national highways authority authorities and those vehicles which were parked in Panakot would be allowed to pass into Lowari tunnel on 7:00 pm.
Scenic Kaghan valley receives heavy snowfall: The scenic Kaghan valley received heavy snowfall of the season on Tuesday, brining mercury down across the district.
The snowfall, which started on Monday night, continued the entire day intermittently, leading to severe chill in district.
The tourists, few numbers, could not proceed ahead from Kaghan owing to continuous snowfall. “I have rushed to Kaghan valley in the morning to enjoy the first snowfall of this season but police stopped us in Kaghan and didn’t allow to proceed ahead because of dangerous road condition,” Sahibzada Jawad Alfaizi told reporters.
“We have not been allowing tourists beyond Kaghan town as Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road has become dangerous for motorists because of heavy snowfall,” said Mohammad Tariq, the SHO Kaghan Police Station.
Mansehra, Kohistan and Torghar district also received rain, which caused severe chill there.