MANSEHRA, June 25: At least four big glaciers in the Kaghan valley have vanished due to the effects of global warming during the last 20 years.

“There were about eight big glaciers in Kaghan valley some 20 years ago of which we can see only four now.

But their thickness and altitude has also reduced drastically,” said Prof Syed Shaukat Ali, a native of Kaghan.

There were eight big glaciers, including Laree, Rajwal, Borawai, Showrtham, two each in Naran and Battakundi in the Kaghan valley in the early 90s, but owing to soaring temperatures now the avalanches had almost been vanished.

Mr Ali said that only the glaciers of Rawal, Naran, Borawai and Battakundi were still there.

During a recent visit to the valley this correspondent witnessed that the land at the site of the vanished glaciers had turned blackish with no flora on it.

Shaukat Ali, who is chairman of the journalism department in Hazara University, said that he was surprised with the speed of changes in the area as the biggest glacier of Showrtham had also disappeared.

Mr Ali, who got his early education in Kaghan, said that in early 90s the valley used to receive 25-30 feet snowfall, but the last year's recorded snowfall was 10 feet even at the highest peak of the Ganga Takah.

According to studies, the global warming and related environmental issues were affecting over 262 million people every year in the world and climate disasters and drought cycles were frequent and prolonged. WINDSTORM:

Dozens of prefabricated houses and shops were blown up by windstorm in Balakot on Friday night.

The storm, which struck the Balakot and its suburbs, also take with it the steel sheet shelters of the Balakot police station and two nearby stalls.

Eyewitnesses told this correspondent that the windstorm, which was followed by rain, blew up six shelters in Narah, five in Garlat, seven in Mangal and one each in Habibabad and Jab-i-Rehmat.

They said that as the storm started, people rushed out of their shelters and prefabricated houses in panic to safer places.

They said that several people received minor injuries during the storm, who were provided first aid at the tehsil hospital, Balakot.