Madaklasht villagers give SOS call for reconstruction of canal

MADAKLASHT: The people of three small villages, consisting of over 150 houses, in the remote Madaklasht valley have called upon the authorities concerned to save their agricultural fields and orchards by reconstructing the only canal from a stream.

In a letter addressed to the district nazim of Chitral and others, the residents of Bebantaan, Jangal and Dasht villages, led by village council Madaklasht nazim Khursheed Ahmed, said around 300 feet portion of the vital canal irrigating the villages from Manji Gol was damaged in the 2015 floods,

Since then, the people of the villages had been repairing the canal on a self-help basis every year. This winter, however, snowfall and rains further created cracks in the canal making it impossible for the area residents to repair it on their own.
The 300 feet portion of the canal has now collapsed into the river and there is even no sign of it. As a result, the villagers have lost all hopes as they have no resources to reconstruct the canal to bring it back to its earlier shape.

They said over 150 houses depended on the canal for not only irrigating their agricultural fields and fruit trees but also for drinking purposes.

“As the irrigation in our area starts normally in June every year, we request the authorities concerned, especially the district nazim, Haji Maghfirat Shah, to come to our rescue and help us in the reconstruction of the canal without any delay so that our crops on which we depend for our livelihood can be saved,” they added.

The villagers said if timely help was not provided to reconstruct the canal, the villages would suffer in terms of damages to their crops and fruit trees and other properties. They expressed the hope that the district nazim would take notice of the public issue and provide funds for the reconstruction of the water channel.