Khyber Pass - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa – a land of historical mysteries

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is full of historical places as the area has remained a bastion of ancient civilizations. It is said that Aryans were the first ones who invaded this place about four thousand years ago. Later on, the Persians invaded this area around 500 BC. After Persians, this area remained under Greeks, Mauryans, Huns, Guptas and then under Muslims. The province has diverse traditions, architect and culture as it has been part of many ancient kingdoms. In the recent history, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has remained part of the Mughal dynasty and later on ruled by Britishers. All these civilizations have left their impression in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa through their traditional architect, some of which still remains to this date etched with ancient memories.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has taken various initiatives to preserve these historical sites, however, young generation is generally unaware of these sites due to various reasons. The region has mostly remained neglected or no-go area due to terrorism. However, the situation has considerably improved in the province and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government is taking various steps to attract tourists to historical destinations of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Some of the famous historical sites of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are in tribal areas. Khyber district is one of the tribal districts which has numerous historical sites and can be an attractive tourists site.

Khyber Pass
Khyber Pass is a mountain pass in the northwest of Pakistan, on the border with Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing part of the Spin Ghar mountains. Khyber Pass was the route used by many invaders to conquer India, starting from Alexander, the Great to the Mughals and then Afghans. Throughout the history, it has remained an important trade route between Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Due to its geographical importance British government has made many military pickets to oversee the Pass. The Pass is still used for trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Khyber Pass - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Khyber Rifle Mess
During the period of British rule, it was one of the eight “Frontier Corps” or paramilitary units recruited from the tribesmen of the North West Frontier, serving as auxiliaries for the regular British Indian Army. The Khyber Rifles were recruited from Afridi tribesmen with British commanders. The headquarters of the Khyber Rifles was at Landi Kotal. Its prime role was to guard the Khyber Pass. After independence the paramilitary force was absorbed in Pakistan forces. The Khyber Rifle Mess built by Britishers is a well-kept historical site which has many historical antiques of the past century. The Mess has been visited by various world famous leaders and personalities. The walls of Khyber Rifle Mess are adorned with photographs of these dignitaries which includes Queen Elizabeth of England, Princess Anne, the Shah of Iran, Margret Thatcher, Jaqueline Kennedy and Lady Diana. Among Pakistani dignitaries, starting from the founder of the nation Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah and Fatima Jinnah, perhaps every president and prime minister has been to this historic place.

Khyber Rifle Mess - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

The Landi Kotal Cantonment has also a very strange but interesting tree which to this day remains in chains and bears a board “I AM UNDER ARREST”. In 1898, British army officer James Squid saw an old banyan tree lurch towards him. In a state of drunkenness, he ordered a soldier to arrest the tree immediately. To this day, it stands fettered and forlorn in the Landi Kotal army cantonment area which is a symbol of draconian British Frontier Crimes Regulation Laws.

Chained tree at Khyber Rifles mess - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Shagai Fort
Shagai Fort is the traditional guardian of the Khyber Pass. It is located 13 kilometers from Jamrud in Khyber Agency. It was built in 1927 by the British forces to oversee the Khyber Pass. The Fort is currently manned by Pakistani military and paramilitary troops serving as headquarters for the Khyber Rifles. The Fort is an attractive British Era structure and is worth visiting place.

Shagai Fort

Ali Masjid Fort
Khyber district has a historical mosque called “Ali Masjid” named in memory of Hazrat Ali (RA), the cousin of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Ali Masjid is the narrowest point of the Khyber Pass. In 1837 Afghan amir, Dōst Mohammad Khān built a fortress near the mosque called Ali Masjid Fort. However, it was destroyed and reconstructed numerous times in various historical battles. Ali Masjid has witnessed intense battles between the British and tribals both in the first Afghan war in 1842 and the second Afghan war in 1879. In the late 19th century, like other historical places, Ali Masjid fort was reconstructed by British government to oversee Khyber Pass.

Ali Masjid Fort

The fort is divided into an old colonial block and a newer block. There is also a hospital nearby, which is carved inside mountain. The top of the fort gives such a commanding view of the surrounds that in a conflict, it can become impossible for the opponents to evade unharmed from the area.

Tale of Train
The Khyber Railways was originally planned by the British in the late 19th century as a strategic project to counter suspected Russian invasion of the sub-continent via Afghanistan in the era of ‘The Great Game’. Queen Victoria’s government in a bid to fight it out in the barren lands of Afghanistan constructed this track. However, in 1907, both sides signed an agreement to remain restricted to their borders. The Khyber Railways was still commissioned as an efficient way of moving troops at short notice.

In 2010, Pakistan Railways began a feasibility study to rebuild the Khyber Pass railway and to possibly extend it further west to Jalalabad, Afghanistan. However, work has been stalled due to the security situation in Afghanistan. In 2016, the Afghan Ministry of Public Works began a survey of the railway line from the Pakistan border to Jalalabad. Afghanistan has also put forth proposals and requests to further extend the railway to Kabul. The efforts to revive the project shows that the railway track is still very significant and is maintaining its relevancy through the ages.

Khyber Railways - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

The number of tourists visiting tribal districts has increased gradually since the restoration of peace in the region. Tourism has emerged as an important sector that can serve as an engine for mustering sustainable economic growth in the most underdeveloped areas of Pakistan i.e tribal districts.

While talking to one tourist Aleena Mahsud who has recently visited the area, claimed that “I did not believe that I will be able to witness such a crowd in the area, which was considered a no-go zone a year ago. KP government needs to take concrete steps to change perception of Tribal Districts to attract national and international tourists. This will not only project a softer image of KP but also help locals earn livelihood from tourism industry.

Is Tiger Force a good initiative or a political move?

PM Khan’s Corona Relief Tiger Force is set to become a fundamental and core element in fight against Covid-19. It will help government to provide assistance to the Pakistanis who are directly affected by this pandemic. The Corona Relief Tiger force was made operational on Monday 4th May, 2020 by PM Khan himself.

It is a good initiative as the government alone cannot cope with the increasingly deteriorating situation. Though the opposition is heavily criticizing this initiative terming it a political step to favor PTI activists. However, more than 300,000 volunteers has already applied to be a part of this force.

PM Khan while addressing the Tiger Force volunteers said that the volunteers will go to union councils and publicize the government’s guidelines. The primary and essential objectives of the Corona Relief Tiger Force will be to provide funds, food and medical help. Apart from this it’ll also play an active part in fight against Covid-19 by contact tracing activities. Some of the main duties of Tiger Force will be to facilitate the functioning of utility stores, implement SOPs at mosques, help in the management of isolation and quarantine centers. It will also identify hoarders, profiteers and the deserving people in their locality for distribution of ration. Volunteers need to strike a balance between saving people from the virus and saving them from hunger.

The Tiger Force volunteers would also be given some training on security, quarantine, relief, health and awareness. Duties would be assigned as per qualification and age. A code of conduct is also issued for the volunteers. The Tiger Force will be operational under the guidance and supervision of the district committee consisting of deputy commissioner, district police official, additional deputy commissioner, members of national assembly. Similar committees are also being formulated at Tehsil and Union Council level.

The opposition parties claims that there was no need of launching a special force to tackle the pandemic when the government already have an operational machinery at central and local levels. Moreover, International and local organizations are also working round the clock with thousands of volunteers.

Keeping aside opposition criticism, Tiger Force is a very innovative idea and can greatly help in tackling the pandemic situation if intelligently utilized by the government.

The international media has also appreciated PM Khan’s various initiatives including Tiger Force to control the spread of COVID-19 and help poor families in this adverse situation. If this force delivers on what it promises, it can become a permanent part of future policy to cope with such emergency situations.

However, PTI government needs to take all stake holders including opposition parties on board in order to ensure that the force remains non-controversial and apolitical. It will only be able to help provincial governments if and only it is accepted as a non-political force primarily aimed at assisting government machinery irrespective of its political affiliation.

Billion Tree Tsunami Project: Boon or Bane?

Launched in 2014, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province took a challenging initiative to plant a billion trees. This was in direct response to the Bonn Challenge (a global goal to restore 150 million hectares of degraded and deforested land). Simultaneously, it also reaffirmed PTIs commitment to fight against global warming. The international standard for forest cover as recommended by the UN is 12% and Pakistan has only 5% forest cover. Therefore, the initiative was aimed at addressing the fast eroding forest cover and to reach the international standards of forest cover. Criticism for the project known as ‘Billion Tree Tsunami Project’ abounds. However, the benefits of increased forest cover cannot be denied.

It is an indisputable fact that forests help maintaining healthy ecosystem. It provides shelter for animals, soil and water conservation services and clean air. Forests prevent desertification and degradation of land. Trees help in climate change mitigation as they are natural carbon sinks. Perhaps one of the most evident factor regarding the importance of forests is that their significance has also been highlighted as per our SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).

The SDGs are our sustainable road map and 17 SDGs have so far adopted by all UN member states who are striving to achieve them by 2030. As per SDG 15, the aim is to protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss. Forest management and prevention of forest degradation have been clearly outlined within this SDG.

Therefore, 169-million-dollar project was also in-line with the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals Agenda. In fact, Pakistan reached its goal (in August 2017) of a billion trees ahead of schedule and became one of the first countries to achieve its goal under the Bonn Challenge. The project was essentially two-fold and concentrated on plantation as well as regeneration. The aim of the project was 550 million tree saplings planted in two phases and the remaining 450 million saplings were to be naturally generated in forest enclosures. Plant species to be planted included oleander, Aeasia Arabia, chir pine, walnut, ziziphus, Palosa, Shisham, eucalyptus.

According to an IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) article, the initiative is a resounding success. Planted trees are reinforcing riparian embankments in important catchment areas, including along the banks of the Indus, Kunhar and Swat rivers. The project has also added tree resources to agricultural lands currently engaged in farm forestry, improved biodiversity by restoring wildlife shelters and will contribute to CO₂ sequestration through new tree plantations. 13,000 private tree nurseries have been established, which in turn enhanced local incomes, generated thousands of green jobs, and empowered unemployed youth of the province. Approximately 500,000 green jobs have been created and given to women of KPK.

Inger Anderseon, DG of IUCN has stated, “IUCN congratulates the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on reaching this momentous milestone. The Billion Tree Tsunami initiative is a true conservation success story, one that further demonstrates Pakistan’s leadership role in the international restoration effort and continued commitment to the Bonn Challenge,”.

However, despite such international backing and undisputable benefits, the project has come under a significant amount of censure. Some environmentalists have stated that the wrong species are being planted in the wrong areas. Plant enclosure for plant regeneration is causing issues in terms of land tenure. Many landowners have taken their land from tenants and entered into five-year plantation agreements with the government. Social inequality is increasing due to the Billion Tree Tsunami Project. One such example is of Amir (name changed) who used to be a goat herder. In 2015, their landowner contracted with forest department for plantation. Amir and his father were told they could no longer graze their goats on this land. They tried to get land from other people but land was becoming scarce as more and more landowners were contracting with the forest Department. These landowners have entered into contracts with the intent to obtain free tree plantation on their land. Once the five-year contract expires, it is forecasted that these landowners will cut down the trees for their own financial benefits i.e. timber, fuel, wood-products.

Therefore, the Billion Tree Tsunami project is not completely faultless. As it was the first of its kind of initiative in Pakistan, the negative aspects should be taken into consideration and an attempt at rectification for ten billion tree tsunami project should be made. The ambitious ‘Ten Billion Tree Tsunami’ project has built upon the success of its predecessor in an ambitious gambit to replicate the original projects success throughout Pakistan. To prevent past adverse social impacts from being repeated, the government can put a cap on the types of trees being planted in specific areas. The government can also put a condition on landowners so that they do not cut off the trees after the five-year plantation contract expires. Additionally, the ‘green’ jobs created through this project should give preference to hiring of those individuals that might have lost their livelihood opportunities due to landowners entering into contracts with the government. It is also pertinent to mention that people like Amir may have lost one means of livelihood but due to creation of ‘green’ jobs, new opportunities for employment also simultaneously opens up. Awareness campaigns for these new jobs in established nurseries etc. should also be put into action.

The Billion Tree Tsunami project garnered international recognition and has been deemed a positive endeavor on behalf of PTI government. Any new endeavor is not without unintended drawbacks but analysts can learn from past mistakes. It is still too soon to ascertain whether the project will have long-term benefits for the country’s climate as the trees are still saplings. Concrete research shows that afforestation is always beneficial for a region in tackling climate change which is why this initiative was spearheaded by PTI in the first place. It might be idealistic but let us hope that when the Billion Tree Project is revisited in ten or fifteen years’ time, it will be found that the project most positively had long-term beneficial impacts socially, economically and environmentally.

Rise of Drugs addicts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

The drugs addiction among youth of Khyber PakhtunKhwa (KP) is on rise at an alarming pace despite strict legislation and measures of the provincial government to curb this menace.

A recent report issued by the Public Health Association KP revealed that almost 11 per cent of the KP’s population has used an illicit substance in the past year alone.
As per the report, there are many reasons which contribute to the increased availability of drugs in KP. Close proximity of KP to Afghanistan, which is a major opium producer in the world, is one of the main reason that KP is the worst affected province.

The report generally highlighted Pakistan as a safe heaven for drug addicts and drugs dealers. However, Peshawar has been mentioned as one of the top most affected cities from neighbouring Afghanistan.

According to another report carried out by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in 2014, there were 6.7 million people who use drugs in Pakistan, of which 4.25 million lives are depended on drugs.

The report estimated that more than eight million Pakistanis aged between 15 to 64 are regular drug abusers and almost five million are addicted to high-grade hashish commonly known as charas.

According to the report, Pakistan consumed 44 tons of heroins annually. About 110 tons of heroin and morphine is smuggled through Pakistan to international markets from Afghanistan. Four million users were listed as cannabis addicts, the most common drug used in Pakistan.

The report said the majority of the drug users are aged between 25 to 39 years. 40 per cent of the eight million used drugs due to poverty and stress and the rest used it to seek pleasure.

The report revealed that 74 per cent of the world’s opium is produced in Afghanistan and 40 per cent of this is supplied to the rest of the world via Pakistan, 34 per cent via Iran and the rest via Russia and other Central Asian countries.

However, commenting on the matter, Dr Iftikhar Hussain a leading psychiatrist working in Peshawar said that Pakistan is geographically vulnerable to drug trafficking due to its porous borders with Afghanistan; adding that the border management should seriously cope this issue by keeping a sharp eye on border movement; otherwise the situation is likely to further aggravate.

Dr Iftikhar who is curing the drugs abusers for the last two decades told us that the government should build more play grounds, give access to internet and increase employment opportunities in order to keep the youth away from drug addiction.

He claimed that the ratio of women drug addicts is also on alarming rise in KP which needs to be addressed immediately as it will have implications for the coming generations.

He demanded KP government to establish more rehabilitation centres in the province as the influx of the drugs patients was very high. Over 2 million drugs addicts are already registered in different rehabilitation centres of the province and it will not be able to accommodate any more addicts.

The United Nations, in one of its report has claimed that Afghanistan is the world’s largest producer of illicit opium which has also affected its bordering countries.
According to reports, in 2016-17, Pakistan seized a total of 2,860 metric tons of different types of narcotics drugs, but still there is a lot to be done in breaking its supply chain. Reportedly, few police stations are directly involved in drugs supply and providing it necessary patronage.

The provincial government must formulate a mechanism to check such corrupt practices and should also establish public committee which will help the government in running awareness campaign against drug addiction and its impact on human lives.

Moreover, the KP government should take a smarter approach in order to restrict the supply of drugs. KP government should use innovative data and technology to assess supply routes and ensure coordinated operations with border forces against drug smugglers. This will greatly help in tackling drugs alongside other criminal activity.

The government should also provide necessary assistance to non-government organizations working against this menace. Dost Foundation in Peshawar is one of the leading rehabilitation centre in the province which treat the drugs patients since years; while talking to us on phone, an official of Dost Foundation said that the government needs to help them in curing the patients as KP is on the verge of very dangerous situations in terms of drugs addiction and trafficking.