Miranjani Estates

19/10/2018

Friday , 19 October 2018

Environmental Hazards Threatening Nathiagali Beauty
Syed Kosar Naqvi

The beauty of Nathiagali, the scenic hill resort in the sylvan slopes of the lower Himalayan range at an altitude of 8,205 feet above sea level, is being destroyed due to acute environmental problems including improper solid waste disposal system.

Clad in pine, walnut and oak maple trees, this is one of the most beautiful hill stations of the country and is gifted with unmatched natural beauty, peace and tranquillity.

There is no proper system to dispose of the solid waste, which has turned the clean environment into polluted one. The once clean drinking water is becoming contaminated as authorities never bothered to resolve the problem.

The British tried to create a little England here with its small timbered church, parks, bungalows and the Governor’s House besides creating several hiking and trekking opportunities, which attracts local as well as foreign tourists.

But uncaring and indifferent attitude of the government departments is gradually decreasing its importance.

Improper disposal of solid waste has been creating unsanitary conditions, which in turn can pollute the environment and cause diseases. The tasks of collecting, treating and disposing solid waste are becoming a challenge to the civic bodies.

All the solid and liquid waste of the hotel industry is thrown away in deep ditches while wastes are put outside houses.

A number of tourists who visited the Galiyat on the weekend told The News that all the surrounding ditches were filled with solid waste, creating bad smell. Another environmental issue that the town is faced with is water contamination.

According to a report published by a local civil society organisation, microbiological and chemical analysis of 30 different sites of Abbottabad district including Nathiagali and Dungagali areas revealed that 93 per cent of the drinking water was unfit for human consumption.

The faecal coliform in some of the water supplies crosses even the ‘very high risk’ level of 1,600 per 100ml of water.

According to WHO standards, 1,000 faecal coliform per 100ml of water is considered to be of ‘very high risk’ level. Of the 30 samples, water supply schemes of Nathiagali and Dungagali were also no exceptions and were adjudged as contaminated.

No picnic spot has been developed for the tourists by the Galiyat Development Authority (GDA), which is supposed to promote and develop tourism in the area and the major attraction for their children is watching monkeys.

Contrary to its mandate, the GDA has failed to develop any pro-tourism policy so far. Locals, especially elders of the area, have strong reservations about the management of the GDA. They claimed that the GDA was protecting the rights of a few elites residing there during summers and creating problems for locals at their behest.

The GDA was assigned certain targets, which included development of tourism, land use zoning, master planning of Galiyat and conservation of natural resources, etc. But most people believe it has not achieved any of its targets for a host of reasons.

This organisation has not developed mechanism for solid waste disposal in Nathiagali, Dungagali and Ayubia.

Director General of GDA, Muhammad Israr told The News that the authority had tried to improve the existing solid waste disposal system at Nathiagali and Ayubia by abolishing old contract system.

Conceding that solid waste generated by the hotels was thrown away in ditches, he said he had convened a meeting of the hotel owners to resolve the issue.

The GDA chief said that 15 people were deputed for the cleanliness of the Galiyat and they would continue to perform this duty until the GDA developed its own waste disposal system. They were directed to take the waste to Abbottabad. He said most of the hotels buildings constructed in Nathiagali were illegal and the GDA was considering taking action against them.

Commenting on water crisis and contamination issues, he said the GDA had developed the Garang water supply for entire Galiyat to address the issue.

15/07/2018

Once again, Mr. Naeem Sadiq, has written an excellent article, on how not to develop. Showcasing Nathia Gali and the 'Curse of the V1 Development.'

Many ‘beautification’ projects, such as ones in Nathiagali, are mindless and purely cosmetic

13/07/2018

'The News' Friday the 13th. Lucky Day!

13/07/2018

Friday the 13th, Our Lucky Day!

12/07/2018

Happy Birthday! to Sunny Afzal Khan. Sunny, would have been 83 years old today, she loved celebrating her Birthday at Miranjani House.

An update on the children of Sunny and Cmdr. M. Afzal Khan's continuing efforts to seek justice through the courts, and through publicizing the illegal activities of Samad and Lalarukh, it was brought to the attention of the heirs, that since the suspicious 2012 fire, in which their family home, Miranjani House was burned to the ground, Samad, Lalarukh and their sons continue to enrich themselves by encroaching upon 25 kanals of government land. This illegal encroachment and Illegal construction onto government land, is worth well over 1 Billion rupees in land value, and is priceless to the environment.

This land had previously remained as a green area in a residential zone, and should have been protected by the Galiyat Development Authority (GDA). Instead, Samad, Lalarukh and their sons, were illegally allowed to carve out the hillside and continue to run an illegal commercial business, while others in Nathiagali have been brought to task for comparatively, seemingly minor offences. Many of Samad’s permissions, for his illegal activities, were granted while he was appointed to the Galiyat Development Authority Board (GDA).

The heirs of Sunny and Cmdr. M. Afzal Khan belong to an honest and upright family, with many outstanding and renowned members, past and present. And as such, they will continue to pursue justice, not only in this personal matter, but also in the interest of P**istan, for its ownership and its environment.

Therefore in,

-Sept. of 2017, this matter was brought to the attention of NAB.

-Oct. 2017, The KPK government formed a commission to include Justice (R) Mohd. Nawaz Abbasi, Lt. Gen. (R) Saeed Qadir and Adv. Supreme Court, Ali Raza.

-March 2018, the commission concluded its report, finding that illegal encroachment and illegal commercial activities are taking place and that, according to rules of Galiyat Development Authority (GDA), required action should be taken. This report was also presented to other government departments and agencies by the commission.

-July 2018, as of this date no visible action has been taken over the illegal occupation and illegal commercial activity which continues at Miranjani House property, while many others in the Galiyats are bought to task, over seemingly minor infractions, while this over 1 Billion Rupee section of government land and environmental destruction continues to go unchecked.

The heirs can only continue to hope that notice and appropriate action will be taken.

Happy Birthday to Sunny Afzal Khan and in loving and respectful memory of Cmdr. M. Afzal Khan.

12/07/2018

Please read, thank you.

06/01/2018

Sending condolences to the family of Air Marshal Asghar Khan, elder brother to Cmdr M. Afzal Khan. The Air Marshal was a man of great integrity and honor. An icon of his time. May he Rest In Peace.

Air Marshal Asghar Khan headed the PAF diligently and with courage. With his leadership capabilities he played a vital role in transforming the PAF into a modern air force, said Air Marshal Sohail Aman.

09/09/2017

Some other concerned environmentalists share the same sentiment.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1669231066444341&id=100000723901272

03/08/2017

"Snowfall in April attributed to Climate Change. However, for some, the snow in the month of April is more alarming than joyous. Noman Ahmed, an environmentalist, connected the new weather conditions to global warming as a result of deforestation – which has been rampant in recent years in the area. He said that that increasing vehicular and industrial emissions coupled with stripping forests were the major contributing factors to climate change."

Galiyat valley, Swat, Gilgit Baltistan areas and scenic Murree received a blanket of snow after 35 years in the month of April. Snowfall has gripped northern parts of the country. Murree, Swat, Ska...

20/07/2017

Wonderful article about Nathiagali highlighting the beauty and wonder of the area. The author does not address the environmental damage taking place with residential properties like Miranjani House being illegally turned into commercial dwellings and destroying parts of the hillside, but maybe that is for another article.

Nathiagali is one of the most beautiful mountain resort towns in P**istan. This amazing hill station is located in Abbottabad District of Khyber Pakhtunkhtunkhwa province. The beautiful hill station is a part of the Galyat range hill stations. Nathiagali is known for its deep jungles, spectacular vi...

16/07/2017

On this day, twenty eight years ago in 1989, Commander M. Afzal Khan passed away. He was a man of integrity and dignity who lived an honorable life. He valued the truth and opposed corruption at every turn.

12/07/2017

Today would have been Sunny Afzal Khan's 82nd Birthday. If she were still alive surely she would have wanted to celebrate it at Miranjani House as she did for many of her other birthdays. May she rest in peace.