Complaining of pollution and encroachments, tourists and residents say the ecology of Kaghan valley, which is paradise on earth, in vulnerable.

Comprising Saiful Muluk and Lolusar Dodiput national parks, the valley is home to exotic and endangered flora and fauna species.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government had divided the area into two national parks on April 28, 2013 for preservation but has yet to take measures for the purpose.

The Saiful Muluk national park along with Saiful Muluk and Ansoo lakes attracts over 0.8 million visitors from within country and abroad annually. The number is almost double to those visiting the Lolusar Dodiput national park.

The Saiful Muluk national park also has the Malka-i-Parbat, the highest peak in Hazara division at an altitude of 17,500 feet above sea level.

The Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road, which links Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with Gilgit-Baltistan, passes through the Lolusar Dodiput national park. Over one million people travel through this habitat of ibex and other wild species annually.

The parks, which remain covered by heavy snow for more than half a year, are named after serene lakes. However, the Lolusar Dodiput national park has nine more unexplored lakes.

According to visitors, the parks having high mountains, serene lakes and glaciers suffer from environmental pollution, littering and encroachments.

The Saiful Muluk national park, which is spread over 12,026 acres of land and is a natural habitat for endangered snow leopard, marmot, brown bear, Himalayan ibex, snow cock, snow partridge, Himalayan griffin vulture and Himalayan monal, is plagued by pollution, overexploitation, ill-planned tourism, illegal breaking up of land for cultivation, ill-planned construction, and commercial activities on the bank of the Saiful Muluk lake.

“I’d never thought that the Saiful Muluk lake surrounded by snow-clad mountains would face environmental pollution, encroachments, soil erosion and other challenges,” said Ayesha Khan, a tourist from Karachi.

She wondered how commercial activities could happen unchecked just 20 meters away from the lake.

The tourist also complained about large-scale boating in the Saiful Muluk Lake and said the activity harmed the lake’s beauty and polluted it.

The lavatories and tented villages established around the lake are another cause of pollution.

Range officer of the wildlife department for both national parks Abdul Basit acknowledged illegal hunting but claimed that his department had checked it widely.

Mr Basit said firewood collection and unscientific grazing harmed natural landscape and caused soil erosion around Saiful Muluk lake and parks.

He said the revenue department’s records showed that the Saiful Muluk national park was shamlat-i-daih (community land), which was a hurdle to the checking of encroachments at Saiful Muluk lake and surroundings.

The official said plastic and solid waste around Saiful Muluk lake was a big challenge for the department to handle.

“We have collected Rs110,000 fine from littering at Saiful Muluk lake and will continue cracking them on pollution,” he said.

Mohammad Rafique, the former nazim of the Paghal village council, regretted that owners of shamlat-i-daih hadn’t been compensated.

He said the government had deprived the local community of their rights after making an announcement about Saiful Muluk and Lolusar Dodiput national parks.

“We don’t have a game reserve for trophy hunting of ibex and exotic species like other national parks of the province and as a result, we don’t benefit in term of community welfare and partnership,” he said.

The former nazim said the wildlife department’s mismanagement led to the denial of commercial activities to the community members despite the payment of registration fee as their cabins and restaurants were moved away from Saiful Muluk lake in 2017.

“We’ve again been asked to relocate one kilometer further rendering our business vulnerable,” he said.

Mr Rafique warned that if the Saiful Muluk lake wasn’t protected from soil erosion and landslides, it would silt up leading to its destruction.

“The wildlife department issued permits to dozens of ferries instead of only four polluting water and environment,” he said.

According to the wildlife department, the two national parks can welcome visitors only five months a year that is a major hurdle to the tackling of issues related to land acquisition, local community and infrastructural development.

“Hurdles to the implementation of the Waste Land Ordinance, 1980, especially Section 82, are a major issue for the development of both national parks,” divisional wildlife officer Syed Taimur Shah said.

He said a large influx of tourists to the valley and boundary dispute between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan hampered the removal of littering in the Lolusar Dodiput national park at Babusar Top.

“For tackling environmental pollution at Saiful Muluk lake, we have finalised a plan to relocate cabins, tuck shops and restaurants to at least one kilometer away. They all will be put up in prefabricated buildings having all modern facilities. We will receive licences fee for them,” he said.

Mr Shah said the Saiful Muluk national park was a shamlat-i-daih property, which was a big hurdle to the preservation of soothing environment.

“Whenever an anti-encroachment was launched, the community put up a resistance claiming ownership of the property,” he said.

The official said the livelihood dependency of Ghumla and Pagal communities at the park service area caused litigations and delayed approval of fee and taxes on various activities for regularisation and shifting of tuck shops and ban of boating.

He said his department was acting with the support of the administration to ensure the implementation of the Kaghan Waste Land Ordinance in Shogran, parts of lower Kaghan, Naran, Battakundia, Burawai, and other wastelands of upper Kaghan.

“We are also planning the establishment of juniper nurseries and direct sowing at degraded wastelands in the valley,” he said.

Published in Dawn, March 22nd, 2020