Rain/snowfall make roads slippery, weather chillier

CHITRAL: Rain and snowfall coupled with winds across Chitral made the weather chilly and blocked the Lowari road for hours due to the slippery surface on Sunday.

Though there was no heavy snowfall and rain on Lowari, due to slush on the road vehicles remained stuck for hours, creating hardship for the passengers.

Moreover, a number of youth going to Timergarah to sit in a written tests for jobs in PESCO could not reach the venue.

Reports said Kalash valleys, Madaklasht, Shishi Koh and Madaklast received snowfall while Ayun, Drosh and Broz etc., recorded torrential rains.

The winds also caused falling of apricot leave buds and farmers said the weather was likely to damage the leaves. However, in areas where crops depend on rain the farmers expected bumper crops.

In Chitral town, Broz, Lawi, Suweer, Osiak and Orghoch, people are waiting for more rain.

Some farmers told ChitralToday that this year apricot flowers had blossomed 10 days earlier, which was a result of global warming.

It also because of the global warming that weather in Chitral has become warmer. As a result, many fruits once considered to grow only in temperate areas such as blood orange is also growing in Chitral.

Meanwhile, the abundant rain/snowfall this summer is being seen as a good omen for agriculture in areas which mostly face shortage of water.

It is also expected that the volume of water in Golen Gol will soon start increasing where not only the locals but also the 108 megawatt powerhouse faced shortage of water in the winter.–Muhkam Uddin Ayuni