Landowner threatens to close Yukum-Meragram road

YARKHUN: The family owning Yukum village in Yarkhun, Upper Chitral, has warned authorities and local representatives that they will close the road passing through their land to traffic if their urgent concerns are not addressed.

They say the privately owned road, which was widened from an old pedestrian pathway stretching over one kilometre from the main Yarkhun road in Mahting village to Yukum Gol for public use, will no longer be available for vehicles if their demands, including construction of an embankment to protect the road and removal of the debris of a collapsed bridge over Yukum Gol, are ignored.

The Yukum crossing over the old and dilapidated bridge is a critical link serving dozens of villages on the left bank of the River Yarkhun from Pardan down to Phashk and Yukum while the main Yarkhun road runs along the river’s right bank.

Speaking to ChitralToday on behalf of his family, which owns the entire Yukum village, Salah Uddin Raza said this is not a government-owned road but private property that originally had only a pedestrian path. His family had voluntarily widened it to allow vehicles for public use but now plans to withdraw that permission if their concerns continue to be ignored.

Key demands of family

The family demanded urgent construction of a protective wall or embankment along the Yukum side, where the river has been eroding the private land for years. He said last year’s flooding completely washed away the road. His family cleared their own forest and fields to reopen the route, but despite repeated appeals, no permanent protective structure has been built.

Removal of old bridge debris

He also called for immediate removal of leftover concrete from the old bridge at Yukum Gol. A bridge over Yukum Gol collapsed soon after its construction about three years ago. The new bridge over the stream has been constructed by AKRSP at a cost of over Rs14 million.

The NGO was supposed to include removal of the old structure and construction of a wall along the stream to protect the privacy of the residents of Yukum. However, it neither removed the debris from the collapsed bridge over the stream nor built the wall, even though the bridge was opened

Besides ongoing river erosion, this leftover material is obstructing the way of Yukum Gol (stream), diverting water and posing an additional flood threat to the village.

Construction of new bridge

Salah Uddin stressed the need for a new, reliable bridge over the river to ensure safe transportation for local communities, especially during the flood season.

Warning to authorities

Salah Uddin warned that unless government departments and elected representatives address these demands immediately, the road will be shut down indefinitely to all types of traffic.

He urged local residents to back these demands through formal applications and resolutions to the authorities, including KP Assembly deputy speaker Suriya Bibi and the deputy commissioner of Upper Chitral. He added that if the government wants the road passing through Yukum to remain open, it must resolve the family’s concerns without delay otherwise the road will be closed.