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At-Booni all moon shine:

By Shafiq Ahmad

District Chitral is the most northern District of NWFP having more than three lacs of the population is divided in to two Tehsil Municipal Administration [TMA] Chitral and Booni for the better delivery of municipal services to the people of Chitral.

Tehsil Municipal Administration [TMA] Booni is a center of social and economic activities of upper Chitral due to its current status and accessible geography as most offices of Government, Non Govt Organizations, banks and private institutions are operating here.

Indeed Booni enjoys a unique position of being Tehsil Head Quarter of upper Chitral, but tragically it has been a sea bed of multiple problems of different dimension and intensity. Coincidentally there is wide misconception around Booni that Booni is a major recipient of Government and Non Government Organization funds. The argument may be true partially but may be wrong for the last five years.

At present all moon shine at Booni, partly due to the exodus of immigrant from outside Booni and partly the reason may be ill planning and strategy for the delivery of social services from Government and other Non Government Organization.

At the entrance to Booni from south one will notice the first glimpses of problem_ an age old wooden bridge of works and services department Chitral. It is very much like an old culture heritage, a specimen of art and skill hanging over Mastuj River. Most of the floor woods have been dismantled due to the ill treatment of said department. If I am not wrong it had been repaired and repaired and repaired and shall be repaired in near future.

The only road leading to Booni is ruined, cracked and ramshackle with width of14 feet, which can accommodate only one vehicle at a time. Due to its dilapidated condition a healthy man can bear the brunt of inconvenience what to say the female patient? Paradoxically vehicles are being parker adjacent to the already narrow road due to the lack of taxi stand at Booni.

Booni Bazar_ a bunch of haphazardly built shops adjacent to the already narrow road manifolds the mobility of traffic as well as passer by. At the center of bazaar the shops of vegetables and poultry has been an eye sore for the entire visitors due to its unhygienic condition and ill method of services. At the door of butcher and poultry shop thousands of flies roaming to see weather any operated organ of chicken has been left unattended. While the waste parts of the chicken are found before the shop for publicity.

Shortage of buildings for offices has been a nerve tiring exercise for the na�ve tehsil municipal administration Booni for the last couple of years and on. The Inherited office of Ex Assistant Commissioner Mastuj is currently used by tehsil municipal administration Mastuj at Booni for the delivery of municipal and developmental services to the half of the Chitral population. One room is equally shared by Tehsil Nazim, Tehsil Naib Nazim, members of tehsil council [for meetings] and support staff. The other room is used by TMO and support staff, while the other two rooms are in disposal of two engineers, accountants and support staff of the office, while the visitors spend most of their time under the sky due to the lack of available space. The luxury of parking lot for the vehicles and fire brigade is out of question.

Health, education, safe and clean drinking water is said to be facilities [as we have been told], but at Booni every thing is in reverse gear. Tehsil head quarter hospital Booni is likely to have 8 male plus 1 female doctor to treat the patient, but it is running by two local doctors round the clock. No body has seen a heaven creature lady doctor for the last 10 years. Worthless to say that during 5 years period of MMA Government female patients were left to male doctors for medical check up.

Is it not moon shine to say that Booni a village of 1300 house hold, a center of upper Chitral and hub of economic activities face the crises of drinking water. Most part of the Booni is devoid of drinking water while the rest lucky part use contaminated with full of mud water to drink. In December a good name pipe water is forgotten altogether, while the under ground water pipes are very much like a spider web and even a pipe fitter of PHE can not know the exact position of under ground pipes.

Most of the residential and commercial purpose built buildings are adjacent to the irrigation and house hold use channels. Due to its proximity with the channels most of the waste water exits are made right on the channels making the water poisonous for the people. The age old indigenous system of Sardaway [ditch to store and cool water] is a story of the past.

Least not last to mention that there is a single Girls High School for Girls which had been constructed few decades back. The said school is perhaps the only school in NWFP which avails 5 month vacations instead of 3 months official vacations round the year. As there is no other facility through out Booni to conduct SSC and FA, F,sc examination so the said school is being used, resulted forced leave to the student of middle and high classes.
Is it not moon shine?