The Khyber Steam Safari - I

Apart from finding the Al Qaeda, the International Community is also interested in another aspect of the Tribal Areas; Tourism. However, they don't get a lot of chances for it. "Train Safari" from Peshawar to Landi Kotal in the Tribal Areas is a unique travel expereince to have. I got the oppurtunity few years back to travel with "History" which i want to share with you...

The “Great Game” is being played between the World powers on the chess board of central and south Asia. Russian influence is present in Afghanistan and British think there is a big possibility of Russian invasion into India. The most obvious routes for this possibility will be either through Khyber or Bolan Pass. Therefore it is suggested that strategic railways be built in both of these passes to thwart any Russian invasion.
In 1878, second Anglo-Afghan war (1878-1880) takes place and it makes it all the while more important to lay a railway track through western passes of India. In 1879 a reconnaissance survey is conducted with an aim to find the feasibility of laying railways through Khyber Pass. Many years pass without any action on the ground. Finally the construction starts in 1905 from a place called Kacha Garhi between Peshawar and Jamrud. The track makes progress westwards and 32 km of track is laid by 1907.
In the meantime, international situation changes and an alliance takes place between Russia and Afghanistan. Russia agrees to consider Afghanistan out of its circle of influence countries. This makes British consider Russia as no longer a threat. This also stops the work on Khyber Pass Railway. In 1909, several kilometers of permanent way and bridges are uprooted from Khyber Pass and sent to other areas of India to be used there.
As it goes with the World politics, international situation changes again and the third Anglo-Afghan war of May 1919 brings life back to Khyber Pass Railway project. Colonel Gordon Hearn is now assigned to the work of surveying and recommending the best route through Khyber Pass. Until now all surveys recommended a meter gauge (1000 mm) track. Gordon Hearn proposes and demonstrates by a masterly survey that broad-gauge (1676 mm) line can be laid through the pass. Construction restarts in 1920 and the section from Jamrud to Landi Kotal, opens on November 3, 1925. In early September 1925, several weeks before the railway was properly completed, the first piece of track was laid into Landi Kotal station, but the end spike was left out. Victor Bayley, the engineer entrusted with the construction of Khyber Railway has a 10 year old daughter called ‘Missy Sahib’ drove it in with 3 hammer blows. Then Bayley and his wife ‘Lady Sahib’ blew the whistle and drove the shunting engine pushing assorted wagons and a brake van into the station. This was a very low-key private affair, not officially sanctioned, and took place even before the extensive 10-track layout at Landi Kotal was put in. Bayley was in bad health at this time and left the Pass shortly afterwards for hospital and eventual convalescence in the UK. He missed the official opening ceremony with the Vice Regal train (but without the Viceroy) in November.

The Inaugural Train though Khyber Pass:On November 4, 1925, Mrs. Victor Bayley, wife of the British engineer entrusted with the construction of Khyber Railway drives the first train through Khyber Pass.

There are two stories as to why Mrs. Victor Bailey drove the first train through the pass.
1. It was decided by the British government that Victor Bayley will run the inaugural train as recognition of his great work at the project but he died three months before the inauguration. His wife then honored the driving of train on her husband’s behalf.
2. According to second version, as the track was being laid, the locals of the Khyber Agency did not allow the train to move on it. However, knowing the traditional respect the Pathans have for women, Victory Bayley, asked his wife to drive the first train in the Khyber Agency. It has been reported that she drew long hair so that she could be identified as a women from a distance.

Landi Kotal to Landi Khana: On April 3, 1926 another portion of 8 km track is opened up to Landi Khana which fall just 3 km short of the actual frontier post of Torkham. The photo in sepia to the left is from April 27, 1932. It shows a tunnel on Khyber Pass railway alongwith (now highway) N5 which runs alongside the track. On December 15, 1932 the Landi Kotal to Landi Khana section of railway was closed down at the insistence of Afghan Government.

The Cost of Construction: The cost of building Khyber Pass railway was accounted as Rupees 485000 per kilometer in 1926. despite this exorbitant cost of construction, Khyber Pass has never seen heavy rail traffic. At best there were only 2 trains per week here. Scenery wise Khyber Pass is not an eye catch either but the feature that sets it apart from other railways in the region is the engineering aspect of it.

Engineering Features: The Khyber Pass railway has a ruling gradient of 3 percent between Jamrud and Landi Kotal. There is a rise of nearly 2000 feet in 34 kilometers, and a drop of 872 feet in the next 8 kilometers to Landi Khana, where in many places the gradient stiffens to 1 in 25. There are 4 reversing stations, 34 tunnels with an aggregate length of more than 4 kilometers, 92 bridges and culverts, and 4 locomotive watering stations. And during the construction, three million cubic yards of materials mainly rock, were moved in the cuttings and embankments.

Reversing Stations: Reversing stations are an important feature of Khyber Pass. Since it is not easy to bend a train here due to tight space, trains switch tracks and engines change their roles. The trailing engine becomes the lead and vice versa at the reversing stations.

Catch Sidings: Besides reversing stations, track at numerous places is also provided with the runway train catch sidings. One such catch siding is shown in the photo on the right (above).
The Khyber Railways is the last of the great railway constructions undertaken on the frontier during the British Raj. From 1947 onwards, Pakistan Railway continued a weekly passenger service through Khyber Pass. The service ran free of charge simply as a gesture to prove to the fiercely independent tribesmen that the line, in-spite of them, was open and the Pakistan Government was the boss. The regular service in Khyber Pass stopped in 1982 due to the lack of commercial patronage.
Due to axle load limitations, diesel engines cannot run on this track. Therefore Khyber Pass railway to date is served by steam locomotion only.
Khyber Steam Safari. At present a tourist train called the ‘Khyber Steam Safari’ is operated here by a privately owned tourist company. The train runs few times a year on scheduled days as well as it can be chartered too.

:Information Provided about Engine:

:Checks:
The train completes a journey of fifty kilometres from Peshawar to Landi Kotal in the semi-autonomous Tribal Agency of "Khyber" in about five hours. The engines of the train are always under strict scrutiny and checks are made constantly even a few minutes before departure to make sure they are in proper working order as the Old Parts of the Engine are not Manufactured anywhere in the World now

:From Desolate Land to the Mountains:
In the beginning, the train passes through the less busy areas surrounding Peshawar. The people used the railway track as dumping ground for rubbish because of its inactivity.

The Khyber Steam Safari - II

The Front Seat !
A couple of diehards also sit in front of the engine to enjoy themselves.

:The Mountains and the Forts:
There is a sudden change in the landscape when somebody enters the Tribal Areas from Peshawar. Instead of concrete buildings, one would find huge walls made of mud that fortify the houses from outside elements.

:Bagpipes:
At the first Stop (Jamrud), we were welcomed by a band playing Bag-pipes.

:A Unique Opportunity:
Almost sixty Western Tourists on the train had had the unique opportunity to go through a land which they would never have been able to see on their own.

:The Winding Train Roars as it Makes its Way:
Seventy to Eighty people are appointed to take care of the railway track. There are a total of eighteen tunnels and dozens of bridges on the line.

The Khyber Steam Safari - III

:Tappa and Safar:

As part of the Safari trip, arrangements for music and the Khattak Dance were also made

:Better than What we Imagined:
Wendy Phillips from Great Britain remarked that the whole trip was much better than what they had imagined it to be


:Historical Pictures at the Khyber Rifles Mess:
After a visit to the Michni Checkpost, the tourists were served at the Khyber Rifles Mess.

:Jamrud Station:
Many tourists got of the train at Jamrud to have a look around while they were themselves being looked upon by local young boys

:Attraction of the Tribal Areas:
Despite popular demand, the Safari Trip does not operate for many days or months at a time because of safety concerns. But there is a pull in the Tribal Areas and the Safari that attracts tourists again and again.

The Early Years of NWFP

There had existed for many years a school of thought which considered that the administration of the Frontier was too important a matter to form merely a portion of the duty and responsibility of the Lieutenant-Governor of the Punjab. The experiences of 1897 brought the subject again to the fore and in 1901, after much discussion and deliberation and in the face of considerable opposition and genuine misgiving in some quarters, Lord Curzon's scheme for the creation of the North West Frontier Province as a separate administration, under a chief commissioner specially selected by the Governor-General, was introduced.

In geographical outline the new province can be readily likened to an outstretched hand, the five settled districts of Hazara (cis-Indus), Peshawar, Kohat, Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan lying in the palm, while the thumb and four fingers stretched out to occupy and close against aggression (from) the five gateways of the Malakand (with Chitral), the Khyber, Kurram, Tochi and Gomal. Incidentally, the clenching of the hand exercises pressure upon the turbulent tribal areas lying between the fingers. (Soon after the decision) the construction of roads and railways was undertaken, to ensure that the regular troops of the Peshawar Division and the Frontier brigades could be rapidly moved to any threatened point. It was part of Lord Kitchener's general scheme of army reorganisation, that the Punjab Frontier Force lost its old corporate existence and its units took their places as part of the new model Indian Army, all portions of which were in future to take their share of service on the Frontier.

The seven peaceful years with which the new administration began bore useful fruit. Though too short a period to work a complete or lasting change in the warlike habits of the people, it was long enough to dispel to some extent the suspicion of our aggressive intentions engendered by the events of the (18)80s and '90s. It also served to introduce the trans-border tribesman to the possibilities of hitherto undreamt of prosperity from peaceful trade, while the extension of canal irrigation from the Swat and Kabul rivers gave opening to many of them to settle down as British subjects to the agricultural development of land newly made cultivable.

The Gulf arms trade between 1907 and 1910 revolutionized the military position on the Frontier. 1907 did not mark the beginning of the change; the importation of rifles and ammunition of European manufacture had begun soon after the Frontier rising of 1897, but ten years later the re-armament of the tribes with weapons far more effective than those possessed by our own militias and military police had proceeded to an extent which could not longer be disregarded and a climax was reached when a single consignment of 30,000 Martini Henrys was run through from the Gulf to Kandahar.

Just when the Frontier had entered wholesale upon this enterprise the Government of India stepped in with the naval and military blockade, which "spoilt sport" to such an extent as nearly to bring about another Frontier war. In 1910 the Adam Khel Afridis of the Kohat Pass were in a very embittered frame of mind owing to their financial losses from the blockade. With the ingenuousness that is a refreshing, if at times annoying, characteristic of the Pathan, they demanded that Government should compensate them. This demand, and the situation generally, was firmly dealt with and by 1911 the Gulf arms trade was to all intents and purposes killed. The re-armament of the tribes however had been effected. The relative position of our forces and theirs could never again be the same. Where formerly a dozen partially trained border police with Martini Henrys could safely be sent out to meet a raiding gang of 30 or 40, strong detachments of 50 were now required.

Between 1909 and 1913 the militias were re-armed, the border military police gave way to the better armed and better trained Frontier Constabulary and the system was inaugurated of issuing rifles to villagers for their own protection and to enable them to co-operate with the Government forces in the defence of the border. Where a tribe under the political control of our own officers (was) concerned, the evil (was) generally kept within bounds. But what if the fugitive from justice (sought) refuge beyond the Durand Line? This was one of the unexpected results of the demarcation of that line.

In the end however, by one means or another, the gangs which found a home beyond the Durand Line and thence pursued this monstrous trade, were killed, captured and broken up, and it was not until the period of tribal disturbance which followed the Third Afghan War that the evil again attained to anything like the same dimensions as in the years which preceded the Great War.

With all these difficulties and drawbacks the years which preceded the Great War were none the less years of progress. In no direction was this more marked than in the spread of education. The most notable step was the inauguration, under the close personal guidance of Sir George Roos-Keppel, of an Islamia College, very much on the same lines as the Gordon College at Khartum. The college buildings, erected in these years, stand on the open plain between Peshawar and Jamrud. Where all else is shuttered and barred and defended by armed men it needs no protection beyond such as a few chowkidars can afford....

The Walled City - Peshawar

The older portion of Peshawar is a walled city, to which the British added their own Cantonment guarded by barbed wires. This old city answers to a traditional Central Asian concept of a high citadel dominating the widely-scattered houses of the generality of people. The city wall surrounded the habitation of common men. The extent of the city must have varied in historic times. But the citadel is most certainly marked by Bala Hisar that still crowns the highest spot of the city. During the Sikh period its extent was delimited by General Avitabile, the Sikh Governor, who built a mud wall surrounding the city. Under the British nearly the whole of the enclosure wall had been built of pucca brick. The gates of the walled city afford an important evidence to study the development of the old city of Peshawar. These divide the walled town into three areas.

Gates of Peshawar City

Lahori Gate

East of the channels lie the highest ground centred around Gor Kathri with Karimpura to its north-west and Pipalmandi to its south-west. At Pipalmandi, one can still see the old Pipal trees, described by Babar. This area was certainly occupied in the pre-Muslim period. Today, besides smaller lanes and by-lanes, two broad streets traverse this area. One starting from Chowk Yadgar and goes to Gor Kathri. Near the Clock Tower, it branches off to Karimpura and finally leads to the Hashtnagari and Lahori Gates.
The other starts from Pipalmandi and proceeds towards Ganj and Ekkatut (Yakatut) gates. This pre-Muslim city is separated by the joint flow of the channels near Chowk Yadgar from Andar-Shahr, the locality in which stands the mosque of Mahabat Khan. The mohalla of Dhakki Nalbandi forms an adjunct of this part. This whole area is again a high ground with shops of jewellery and of the famous Peshawari Lungis (turbans).
The name, Andar-Shahr, i.e. inner city, is very suggestive but the way in which it is separated from the old part by a channel and its proximity to Bala Hisar suggests that it once formed a part of the citadel area, though later in the Muslim period it was cut away to accommodate the over-flow of the population from the older city.
The third area is clearly defined. Between the Kohati Darwaza channel and the Qissa Khwani channel lies Jahangirpura, where the local variety of felt caps (Swati caps... probably the old flat kausia) are made, the name of the locality probably commemorates that of the Mughal emperor Jahangir, in whose reign this area must have been developed. From here the Mughal city spread out between the two channels westward with Sar Asiya (the head of a water mill) making the limit of the extension. In this zone we also have a Mughal era well, known as Sard Chah (cold water well), very famous for its drinking water. The focus of this zone is Namakmandi. which in the old times was the hub of the grain market but now the grain shops have been transferred to Pipalmandi. From Namakmandi the streets lead to Sar Asiya Gate, Sard Chah Gate, Saraki Gate, Bajauri Gate and Dabgari (correctly Dabba-gari, box-making shops) Gate. This whole zone is on a lower level than the older pre-Muslim part of the city and extends lengthwise along the old bed of the Bara channel. To this was added another locality named after Ramdas who was a treasurer during the Sikh regime. These areas of the old city were protected by a wall, originally earthen but later strengthened by brick facing, erected during the Sikh regime, with sixteen gates.

Sarasia Gate

The old wall still runs round the city along with the gates, though renovated and some removed, marking the extent of the pre-British city. The gates are named (clockwise) as:
Kabuli Darwaza
Darwaza Andar Shahr (Asamai)
Kachehri Darwaza (Tangsali)
Reti Darwaza
Rampura Darwaza
Hashtnagari Darwaza
Lahori Darwaza
Ganj Darwaza
Darwaza Ekkatut
Kohati Darwaza
Saraki Darwaza
Sard Chah Darwaza
Sar Asiya (or Tabiban) Darwaza
Darwaza Ramdas
Dabgari Darwaza
Bajauri Darwaza

Ganj Gate

With the development of a new sense of security and promulgation of the rule of law, today the importance of these gates no longer remains. Increased traffic has demanded widening of the streets and removal of the gates. The houses and shops, which were all within the walled city, can now be seen outside and in many places the old walls have been incorporated into new houses. In the older town the residential areas were closed quarters and the shops ranged in the Katras (octagonal or square) and Sarais for reasons of safety. Such Katras and Mohallas can even now be seen in Peshawar.
Behind the Kachehri Darwaza opens Chowk (Square) Yadgar, which gives access to Katra (Octagonal in shape) Abresham (Silk-merchant's shops). To its one side opens Pipalmandi, incorporating within it smaller squares, and to the other goes Katra Bazazan. However, today the most important are the open bazars. The Kabuli Darwaza, which was renamed Edwardes Gate by Sir Herbert Edwardes, the second British Commissioner of Peshawar, after its reconstruction, leads to the famous Qissa Khwani Bazar. "This is the Piccadilly of Central Asia and the fame of the Qissa Khani or Story-Tellers Bazar is known throughout the length of the Frontier, Afghanistan and far even beyond.
Portions of walls in dilapidated condition
According to Gopal Das this open Bazar was originally built by Avitabile. It is mentioned neither by Elphinstone nor by Mohan Lal, who have described the other bazars. From here we pass on to Bazar Misgaran (Bronze ware shops), in one lane of which is hidden Peshawar's Pottery workshop. Further ahead is the Batera Bazar (Pet Shops) leading to fruit market and finally to Chowk Yadgar.

Sirki Gate

The first British Commissioner, Lt. Colonel Frederick Mackeson renamed Jahangirpura as Mackeson-ganj but the older name is still popular. The name Chowk Yadgar is after the Hastings Memorial, built in 1883, which commemorates Colonel E.C. Hastings. Today it is a centre of all political meetings. From here the bazar turns towards Gor Kathri. On our right is the Sabzimandi and in front stands the Ghanta-ghar (Clock Tower), erected in 1900 by Balmukund of Peshawar in memory of Cunningham, another Commissioner of Peshawar. From Qissa Khwani to Ghanta-ghar lies the main bazars of the old city, though today odd shops are seen in most of the streets.
Elphinstone describes a scene in the bazar:
“ When we returned, the streets were crowded with men of all nations and languages, in every variety of dress and appearance. The shops were all open. Dried fruits and nuts, bread, meat, boots, shoes, saddles, bales of cloth, hardware, ready-made clothes, and posteens, books, etc., were either displayed in tiers in front of the shops, or hung up on hooks from roof. Amongst the handsome shops were the fruiterers, (where apples, melons, plums, and even oranges, though they are rare at Peshawar, were mixed in piles with some of the Indian fruits); and the cook-shops, where everything was served in earthen dishes, painted and glazed, so as to look like China. In the streets were people crying greens, curds, etc,. and men, carrying water in leathern bags at their backs, and announcing their commodity by beating on a brazen cup, in which they give a draught to a passenger for a trifling piece of money. With these were mixed, people of the town in white turbans, some in large white or dark blue frocks, and others in sheep-skin cloaks; Persians and Afghauns, in brown woollen tunics, or flowing mantles, and caps of black sheep-skin or coloured silk; Khyberees, with the straw sandals, and the wild dress, and air of their mountains; Hindoos, uniting the peculiar features and manners of their own nation, to the long beard, and the dress of the country; and Hazaurehs, not more remarkable for their conical caps of skin, with the wool, appearing like a fringe round the edge, and for heir broad faces, and little eyes, than for the want of their beard, which is the ornament of every other face in the city”

Sard Chah Gate

The walls are still standing in many places though modern houses have either incorporated portions of the walls or are sitting tight over them. The best preserved part is to the south of the city and can be approached from the Dabgari Gardens. Many of the old gates are rebuilt in recent years and some of them even bear the date on them.
Outside the gates, old Mughal watch towers still stand. Gopal Das speaks of Burj (watch tower) Sayid Khan which can be seen just outside Ganj Gate. Starting from Darwaza Yekkatut, which was rebuilt in March 1944, we proceed eastwards and come across some shops facing the wall. Further ahead we note the repair to the wall and then a break. In sections the wall shows pucca (hardened) bricks at its outer facing and kaccha (feeble) bricks forming the core. A bastion shows a house on its top. A corner bastion is turned into a shop with a residential quarter on its top. We come to the arched gateway of Ganj, which was rebuilt in 1909. A road from this gate leads to the old graveyard and Hazarkhani.
Onwards the wall continues with some breaks. Outside the wall is the locality of Shaikhabad, where stands the famous Ziarat of Shaikh Junaid. In between is an old (now dried-up) Mughal well near a watch-tower. We reach Lahori Darwaza, which, in the mediaeval time, gave way to the main road leading eastwards. Further, the wall continues but is now encumbered with many modern structures. Outside the corner, where the wall turns, there was originally Makari Godam where Jhando ka Mela (Flag carnival) and Eid fairs were held but nowadays it houses the sprawling colony of Nishtarabad.

Kohati Gate

Then we come to Hasht Nagari Darwaza but the gate is no longer in existence. The city wall is now incorporated into a number of houses and shops till we reach Rampura Darwaza, also known as Nawe (New) Darwaza. Outside the gate is the new Rampura area full of houses. The wall ahead is not traceable till we meet Reti Darwaza, named after ironworks. Onwards the shops lead to Tangsali or Kachehri Darwaza, which faces Chowk Yadgar. We follow the broken wall at places and come to Asamai or Andar Shahr Darwaza. Outside this gate is the Lady Reading Hospital. The wall now climbs up Dhakki Nalbandi and goes down to Kabuli Darwaza, which was renamed Edwardes Gate in the last century. The gate is now gone. Onwards is a cinema lane which leads to Bajori Gate, the structure is now finished. The wall continues and shows two octagonal towers until we reach Dabgari Gate, today marked by a single pillar. Further ahead the broken wall continues upto Ramdas Gate. The wall turns ahead towards Sar Asia Gate, which is an arched gateway. Further there is an octagonal corner bastion and we reach Sard Chah Gate, built in 1903. Next is the Saraki Darwaza and finally we come to Kohati Darwaza, which was rebuilt in 1941. This gate leads to the old house of Sultan Yar Muhammad Khan, which is now turned into a Mission High School.

Siachen: a global threat

Glaciers are the most sensitive indicators of climate change. The Himalayas contain the world's third largest ice mass after Antarctica and Greenland. Himalayan glaciers act as climate regulators and are also natural heads of rivers that flow down to half of humanity. Most Himalayan glaciers have been thinning and retreating at an ever accelerating rate to alarming levels for the past two decades. Worldwide, it is considered that the melting of glaciers is due to atmospheric warming but in the case of Himalayan glaciers, direct human intervention on a large scale is the most significant cause. Melting of the Himalayan glaciers is already causing varyiance in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events but its worst impact on global sea level rise is underestimated.

Rising sea-level is the most serious threat to the populations living in coastal areas. Satellite measurements since 1993 show sea-level rising at an average annual rate of about 0.3 millimeter (Inter Governmental panel for Climate Change report- 2007). At the current rate, oceans would have risen by 1400 millimeter in year 2100.

In the past it was assumed that the expansion of water due to temperature rise globally would lead significantly to sea-level rise. This idea has now been overturned according to a report by Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory of 2008, which states that sea level rise contributions by glaciers are almost double that of thermal expansion.

Statistics of the last two decades show that rise of sea-level also increases the frequency and intensity of hurricane and cyclones. The energy released by the average hurricane has increased by around 70% in the past 30 years or so. Five of the ten most expensive storms in United States history have occurred since 1990 with Katrina, for example, in 2005 inflicting over $80 billion damages to the US economy.

Economic consequences of sea level rise and its threat to global coastal community are analyzed by Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The report has attempted to estimate the exposure of the world's large port cities to coastal flooding due to sea level rise. The analysis demonstrates that most of the largest port cities are found in Asia while three major cities of the US, Miami, New York and New Orleans are also susceptible. In 2070 total population exposed to such dangers could grow to around 150 million people. The total asset exposure could grow even more dramatically, reaching US $35 trillion.

To address consequences of sea level rise, the OECD suggests effective disaster management strategies and land use practices. This may well be necessary but some obvious truths are missed. They are not aware that Himalayan glaciers -- the main source of sea level-rise are victims of a 24 year long Siachen conflict between India and Pakistan.

The Siachen glacier is melting at an unprecedented rate due to deployment of troops and establishment of permanent cantonments. In order to facilitate the troops, glacial ice has been cut and melted; cutting and melting of glacial ice through application of chemical have made it the fastest melting glacier. In earlier articles, the author highlighted dumping chemicals, metals, organic and human waste, daily leakages from 2000 gallons of kerosene oil from 250 km plastic pipeline laid by India throughout the glacier as accelerating its melting process.

Unquestionably, it is the Siachen conflict due to which the glaciers of Himalayan region are receding faster than in any other part of the world. Siachen is located on extreme north-west of India where 95% of Indian glaciers lie and India maintains large number of troops there. The Indian Army has developed various means to reach Siachen, including the highest road in the world - Delhi-Manali-Leh-Siachen route. These war specific developments are death sentences for Himalayan glaciers.

Gangotri glacier, the longest Indian glacier presents another case of melting due to human intervention. Glacier is melting at the rate of 32 meters per year, second to Siachen (110 meters per year) due to visits by 400 thousand pilgrims and mountaineers every year. Realizing the impact of human presence on glacier melting, the Indian Expert Committee on Glaciers headed by Dr. B. R. Arora in 2007 recommended that the country restrict tourist and pilgrim traffic to Gangotri and other Himalayan glaciers immediately.

Despite vociferous protests and warning by experts and civil society of South Asia to save Himalayan glaciers neither Pakistan nor India have changed their stance. The heavy economic cost (Pakistan with $ 1 million/day and India $2 million/day) to maintain troops at Siachen since 1984 continues to be a financial disaster for both countries. In the current economic crises that has affected the whole globe; the Indian Army has opened yet another military air base close to the Chinese border near Siachen in Nov 2008.

Climate change is by far the biggest threat ever encountered by humankind. It is time that the global leadership and community work with Pakistani and Indian leaders to save Himalayan glaciers by solving the long-standing Siachen dispute. Not only is this conflict adding to environmental degradation, sea level rise and changing climate pattern but it is also depriving the poor of both countries of close to one billion dollars every year that these countries spend to maintain troops there.

Whither and wither

‘Whither’ is a word concerned with direction, as in ‘whither shall we go’; and ‘wither’ is a word that speaks of decay and a loss of vitality. Both words may be applied in the context of the state of Higher Education in Pakistan. Education at any level has never been a priority of any government since partition, and so it remains today. Underfunded, under-resourced and undervalued the education of the people, young and old, which make up this nation has never merited an investment of more than 4 per cent of GDP. Higher education, the apex of educational attainment and represented by our universities is not only under-funded and under-everything-else, it is perennially tainted by scandals revolving around plagiarism, nepotism and poor management. Those of our brighter and wealthier students and their parents who want to advance educationally have for many years opted to go abroad. ‘Abroad’ offers better teachers, better facilities, an equitable marking system free of corruption and, at the end of their studies, students who go ‘abroad’ have a qualification that has international credibility which many of our home-grown qualifications do not. If you are poor and bright you have few options and ‘abroad’ isn’t one of them.

But what if ‘abroad’ were somehow to be able to come to us? What if the benefits of a foreign education system could somehow get transplanted to Pakistan? This is not such a fanciful notion, and something very like this has been in gestation for a while. The plan was to establish four world-class universities in partnership with Germany, Italy, Austria and China. In the case of the latter a rector and senior Chinese faculty members have already been selected. It was planned that the four universities would have allowed Pakistani students to obtain world-class degrees without leaving the country (and we note that Pakistani parents spend around 80 billion rupees per annum funding their children’s education abroad) and would have attracted students to Pakistan from the Middle East and beyond. The cost of the project was to have been around 160 billion the equivalent of two years parental expenditure. Prime Minister Gilani had approved the project and given the necessary go-aheads and now the entire programme is on hold, allegedly a victim of cost-cutting exercises and the need for ‘further consultation.’

A committee set up to review the project recommended slashing the budget to 72 billion, and this after the provinces have been allocated several billion rupees worth of land. The provincial governments were themselves apparently supportive of the programme. The core of the project was around science and technology and research and development areas in which we lag far behind virtually all of our neighbours. Pakistan has not established a single internationally recognized research and development programme in sixty years India and China both have hundreds. International companies like Siemens Eriksson had already expressed strong interest and we could have seen between fifteen and twenty R and D centres established in these new universities nationally. The costs of the project were not excessive, being around the same as setting up NUST, and construction costs were between 1500 and 2500 per square foot reasonable at today’s prices. We now have egg on our faces as we have to backtrack on the appointments to faculty and other staff that have already been made. Education is not cheap and quality education requires substantial investment. This looks like being yet another opportunity missed because of a failure to prioritise that which the country is most in need of high-quality higher education.