By Zahiruddin
CHITRAL: The chairman of Chitral Community Development Network (CCDN), the umbrella organization of 21 local support organizations throughout the district, Sartaj Ahmed Khan has demanded of the government to provide electricity to the people of Chitral from the Golen Gol Hydro power project at actual expenses per unit basis to stop the cutting of forests for cooking and heating purposes.
Flanked by chairman of Chitral chamber of commerce Atalique Haider Ali Shah, district naib-nazim Maulana Abdul Shakoor and others here on Monday, he said that as per figures issued by the forest department, every year 26000 tonns of wood is sold in the local market for cooking and heating purposes while excluded the amount of wood which is locally used bypassing the market.
Mr. Khan said that if the practice is continued any more, then the forests will be denuded of trees and the temperature will rise exponentially leading to the melting down of glaciers which were the chief source of water.
“The flash floods are the direct effect of deforestation on large scale while the local people have no alternative sources to fulfill their growing needs of both timber for construction and fuel for heating and cooking”, he said.
The high frequency of glacial lake outburst floods (glof) should be taken as the sign of the danger of annihilation of the centuries-old glaciers finally the paucity of water with the ultimate result of drying up of Chitral river which fed the plains of the country after reemerging from Afghanistan near Peshawar valley.
He said that if the growing domestic needs of heating and cooking is fulfilled through the cheap source of hydro power, then the forests will not only be saved but they will also recuperate making the weather phenomenon pleasant and regular.
Mr. Khan said that the per unit expenses at Golen Gol hydro power station, commissioned to work recently, has been estimated at Rs. 1.05 and this is well affordable to the people of Chitral and once this subsidy is given, the cutting of trees for fuel purposes will be banned for ever.
