A week ago, heavy flooding in the scenic valley of Kumrat, Upper Dir, swept away houses, crops, roads, and wooden bridges in Kumrat, Thal, and Barikot, leaving hundreds of tourists stranded along with residents. Thanks to the efforts of the district administration, the tourists were eventually evacuated and brought to Dir.
However, the road from Thal to Kumrat and Barikot to Thal remains disconnected at two points where the floodwaters have washed away the road completely. The traffic flow has been entirely cut off, and people, including women and children, have been forced to trek on foot along the mountains.
The Provincial Highways Authority (PKHA) and the Communication and Works Department (C&W), under the instructions of the district administration, began using heavy machinery to restore the road along the riverbank near Barikot and cut through the mountain at Galun. However, six days have passed, and the road from Barikot to Thal has still not been fully restored, leaving the residents of Thal and Kalkot frustrated and angry.
On Wednesday, residents of Thal and Kumrat staged a protest in the historic mosque of Thal. Speaking at the protest, ANP leader Haji Gul Sher and others highlighted the difficulties faced by the people of Thal and Kalkot over the past six days. "People are being forced to climb the mountains on foot in Barikot. Trying to restore the road with just one excavator is a joke to the over 100,000 residents of Thal, Kalkot, and Barikot," said the speakers.
"Our women are walking on foot, while children and the sick are being carried on shoulders. It's a tragedy that 400 meters of the road, washed away by the flood, has still not been restored. Locals cannot bring food supplies from Dir or other areas, and vehicles cannot operate."
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Criticizing the district administration, PKHA, and C&W, they pointed out that the authorities seem unaware of the hardships faced by the local population while arranging a helicopter for an influential family from Karachi. "It is impossible to restore the road with just a couple of excavators. We demand the district administration, particularly the DC Upper Dir, to increase the number of excavators so that the road restoration can be completed as soon as possible."
Abdullah, a vegetable vendor in Thal, expressed concerns that the delay in road repair could lead to further losses. "On one hand, the floods have caused severe damage to the people, and on the other, the lack of road repair has made it difficult to transport vegetables from Thal to various major markets across the country. There is a risk that vegetables may spoil in the trucks and warehouses. Some people are reluctantly using the Badgoi route, which is a rough, challenging, and long road, but it is proving to be costly." he said
Abdullah urged the district administration to deploy more heavy machinery and open the road as soon as possible, as thousands of people are facing severe difficulties.
Assistant Commissioner Bilal Naseer stated that the administration's top priority was to evacuate the stranded tourists in Kumrat, which they successfully did within two days, transporting over 200 tourists safely via Thal and Badgoi to Dir.
"We are also working on restoring the road washed away by the flood from Thal to Kumrat and are trying to complete it as soon as possible, but it will take some time," he added. On Thursday evening, a part of the road at Barikot was partially reopened for traffic, allowing vehicles to move between Thal and Dir from both directions.
While some progress has been made, residents hope for a swift and complete restoration of the road to alleviate their ongoing struggles.
