www.chitraltimes.com

Provincial minister Saleem Khan regrests the deaths in Lowari Top

By Zahiruddin

CHITRAL: Provincial minister of population welfare Saleem Khan has expressed his grief and sorrow over the tragic death of five persons in the Lowari Top Monday last when they were hit by snow avalanche. Talking to chitraltimes.com by telephone from Peshawar here on Wednesday, he said that he had time and again informed the gravity of the problem to the federal government and demanded opening of the tunnel for the passengers but certain quarters aborted all his efforts. He said that the work on the snow clearance on the Lowari Top road is going with extremely slow speed and it will take at lease one month more for opening of the road for vehicular traffic. He said that he is approaching the federal government to reiterate his demand of opening the tunnel for the passengers. He said that the chief minister will announce compensation for the heirs of those died in the Lowari Top incident. Criticizing the National Highway Authority (NHA) personnel in the tunnel, he said that they allow the influential people to travel through the tunnel but disallowed the poor. He said that those perished in the recent incident were poor labourers who had gone to Karachi to earn livelihood for their families and two of them were the sole bread earners of their respective families. The minister said that the passengers make desperate attempt to cross the Lowari Top and lose their lives which the government must take a notice of and open the tunnel for them. To save more lives from tragic death in the Lowari, he demanded of the government to open the tunnel for the passengers daily for one hour and also expedite the work on the snow clearance in the Lowari Top road. Meanwhile, no work could be initiated on Wednesday to trace the dead bodies of the two missing passengers in the Lowari Top due to the continued snowfall there, police sources said.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Supply of Electricity to Chitral suspended from National Grid

By our correspondent

CHITRAL The supply of electricity remained suspended for the fourth consecutive day as the district was disconnected from the national grid due to the felling of electric pole at the Lowari Top. The grid station organization (GSO) could not start work on restoration of the line due to the harsh weather and snowfall. The sources said that the situation has further aggravated as one of the two generating units of the local hydel power station has gone out of work which had already developed a technical fault. Meanwhile, the PIA service to Chitral cancelled for the ninth day consecutively due to the inclement weather. The district is receiving intermittent rains for the last four days and the roads leading to some distant valleys have been closed for vehicular traffic which included Oveer, Yarkhoon, Rech and Golen.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 

TMA order ineffective, Tournaments of football and cricket are continues in different villages

By Zahiruddin

CHITRAL: Despite the ban imposed by the tehsil municipal administration Chitral on holding sports tournaments for one month in its jurisdiction, tournaments of football and cricket are being held in different villages of the area. The residents of Chitral had appreciated the decision of TMA on the ground that the matric and home examinations in the schools are in progress and the ban will save the precious time of the students who wasted their times in the events. The parents asked the tehsil nazim to implement his decision and assured him of their all out support. They said that no person should dare to defy the government decision which had been made in the best interest of the student community. They said that the holding of sports tournaments caused the wastage of time the precious time of their children in the last phase of the academic year when examinations are held.