ECOCLUB Blogs™

Chitral -- Tourism Corporation Khyber Pukhtunkhwa (TCKP) sponsored festival of indigenous cuisines and the evening musical show was organized through the arrangement of Chitral Association for Mountain Area Tourism (CAMAT) on March 21, 2011, in Chitral town. The slogan of the day was ‘our culture is our identity; its protection is our need’. The objective of the activity was to protect and promote the traditional food of Chitral and to link the same with tourism industry for the economic empowerment and welfare of women—who are normally involved in cooking at household level—in the entire region. It is to be noted that the young generation has almost had forgotten the names and tastes of their cultural cuisines, which means they could disappear very soon without adding economic incentives and linking it with tourism industry. This was the overarching objective of the event. The food festival implemented in collaboration with Girl Guides—a voluntary organization of young school students in Dolomoch, Chitral town. The event was planned, monitored and supervised by community representatives and judges. The cuisines showcased on the occasion i.e. shoshp, chhira shapik, ghara, shoshpalaki, chamborogh, sanabachi, mol and lazhek were cooked at household level. They were highly appreciated and categorized in respect...

Competition of cooking traditional Chitrali cuisines and evening cultural music will be organised on March 21. The activity is organised through the support of Sarhad Tourism Corporation and will be implemented by CAMAT. It must be noted that STC and CAMAT signed MoU and the former provided financial support for the activities of 2011-12. The purpose of the activity is to promote the indigenous cuisines and to link it with tourism industry in guest houses to be sumplemented by traditional music.

PESHAWAR: The Wildlife department has sold permits for hunting of four Kashmiri Markhors (wild goat with spiral long horns) under the Trophy Hunting Scheme. "We have sold permits for the current hunting season, starting from December to March, to an outfitter, Shikar Safari Club," informed Chief Conservator Wildlife Department Saeeduz Zaman while talking to this news agency on Tuesday. He revealed that four permits have been sold at a total value of $2,86,000. Giving further details, Saeed said, two permits were sold for hunting Markhor in Tooshi Shasha game reserved in Chitral for $80,500 each. Similarly, one permit was sold for $70000 in Gahirat game reserved in Chitral while the fourth one was sold for Kohistan district (Kaigah Game Reserve) for $55,000. The chief conservator said sale of these permits were made through auction. The department sought bids from hunters-outfitter for hunting of 10 Himalayan ibexes and four Kashmiri Markhors. "Advertisements were floated in the press and also put on websites of international organisations dealing with wildlife for attracting maximum number of hunters, he added. After completion of bidding process, permits were given to the highest bidder, Shikar Safari club. He informed that in the current year no bid was received...

Wish everybody a happy year 2011!

Chitral Association for Mountain Area Tourism (CAMAT) facilitated the participation of artisans from the Chitral district to Lok Virsa Handicraft/ Looming Exhibition in Shakarparian, Islamabad from December 28 to30, 2010. The purpose of the exhibition was to highlight the products from different parts of Pakistan, giving market linkages and exposure opportunities to artisans to learn from each other’s work. Chitral’s pavilion attracted a good number of visitors who showed interest in the handicrafts and bought Chitrali cap, woolen and goat-hair carpet, wooden spoon and so on. In the meantime, training about looming was also imparted to artisans aimed at diversifying their products and to make it more market-friendly. This could be possible by changing the designs, patterns and color system of the products. Likewise, the frame looming which is in vogue in Chitral has to be changed for an easier method called ‘pit looming’, practiced in Sindh and Punjab. It is quite worrying that at present the handicraft of Chitral is at cross-road. The work, which is more or less women-centered, is labor-intensive whilst the price is not as encouraging as to engage young generation. This means the handicraft is dying out. The only safe way to protect it is by...

The Kalash people, living in Bumburate, Birir and Rumbur valleys of the district, began to celebrate their winter festival Chitramas on Wednesday with spiritual zeal. The final day of the weeklong festival coincides with the first day of the new year of Kalash calendar. In every village, some Kalash men and women volunteer to confine themselves in a cattle pen. The tradition is called Autik, which means ‘to get secluded’ in the local dialect. The secluded persons completely insulate themselves from other people during the week and eat the meat of slaughtered goats, drink and pass time in merrymaking. The elder Kalash congregate on the hilltops or plateaus to observe the movement of sun on the basis of which they declare the advent of new year on the final day of the festival. Tash Khan, a Kalash youth from Rumbur valley, working at a government office in Chitral city, said he availed a week leave to participate in the festival but failed to enlist himself among the people on seclusion. He said during Autik even a sight of other people was believed to pollute them. “Kalash slaughter their goats, mostly one goat per adult man or woman, on the concluding day...

      1.    Introduction 10/10/10 International Day of Climate Change was celebrated in Booni, Chitral, Pakistan, through the facilitation of Destination Management Organization (DMO) Chitral and 350.org. The theme of the day was 'Breaking of Booni Glacier, Its Relation to Climate Change'. As many as 500 people from different walks of life participated. The day has had significance for the people of Booni as they have recently witnessed a flood destroying their valuable property and causing them major health problems, psychological twists and infrastructure disruption.   2.    Objective The objective was to join the worldwide communities in highlighting climate problems—breaking of glacier, untimely melting of snow, frequent floods and unpredictable climate conditions—in the Hindu Kush Mountains.  3.     Speeches To begin with, speeches highlighting the prospects of climate change in the Hindu Kush Mountains were delivered. Mr Sadruddin, the principal of Orion School of Learning (OSL) impressed upon the participants to save the Booni village by protecting natural environment. This challenge could be successfully tackled by offering environmental-friendly education/values to children within the family right from their childhood. In turn, this will make the task easier for teachers, once they are admitted to schools. He also said that ecology/ natural biodiversity had to be included...

The unique mountain goats (Markhor) were at the verge of extinction in Chitral at the beginning of nineties before the World Conservation Union (IUCN) started biodiversity conservation project in Chitral in collaboration with Wildlife Department Chitral to preserve the population of markhor. As a result a number of conservancies were established and notified by the provincial government and conservation efforts were launched with the local communities already organized by AKRSP in majority areas.   Within a short period of time 5-6 years trophy hunting was introduced as wildlife conservation tool by the Khyber Pukhtunkhaw Wildlife Department, which was well received by the communities. The years and price of trophies over the year are as follows: In 1999 two trophy hunts were carried out in Thushi Community Game Reserve Chitral and each Markhor hunt was auctioned at 18,000 USD. By the year 2000, the markhor auction went up 25,000 USD and with each passing year it continuously increased and reached 45,000 USD per markhor in 2005. The figure of 2008 show that a markhor hunt in Thushi was auctioned up to USD 80,000. The last time price of the trophy in 2009 went upto USD 85,000   The interesting aspect of this...

‘Broghil’—the documentary by GEO tv during Jashan-e-Broghil 2010—will be telecast on Friday, September 17 at 11:05PM. You can watch the movie and enjoy the unique culture of the Wakhi community in the Eastern Pamir [Broghil].  It must be noted that a number of national and international TV crew visited Broghil to cover the event. You can also visit the following website link to read more: http://batutaschool.org/en/node/276#comment-66 Can be in contact with us to assure your participation in Broghil Festival 2011. Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Cell: +93 302 5975059 Thanks!

  Dear friends, You can please visit the following website link to watch the movie of Booni flooding caused by glacier breaking. The glacier of Booni Zom is shown by skilled paraglider friends.   http://www.batutaschool.org/en/node/297   Thanks to Mr Jurgen Depicker for uploading the movies and thanks, also, for your time to visit the website of our school, which working for poor-friendly education in the Mountains of Chitral. Thanks! Shams Uddin, Chitral, Northern Pakistan