MANSEHRA: Traffic between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan via Babusar Top was suspended on Wednesday after Kaghan Valley received heavy snowfall for the second time in a few days.
‘We have restricted traffic beyond Bassal to upper parts of Kaghan Valley and neighbouring Diamer district, as fresh snowfall has made Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad (MNJ) Road slippery and dangerous,’ district police officer Mohammad Waqas Khan told reporters.
It began snowing on Tuesday night in high-altitude areas, including Saiful Muluk Lake, Lulusar Lake, Battakundi, Bassal and Babusar Top, and continued the following day intermittently, turning the weather chilly.
‘If the current snowfall spell continues, it might block the MNJ Road permanently until next summer, suspending traffic between the two federating units during the period,’ the DPO said.
He said traffic up to Naran, the commercial hub of Kaghan Valley, was still on and tourists, though in small numbers, continued to visit the area to enjoy snowfall.
‘Though hotels and businesses in upper parts of Kaghan Valley have closed until next summer, Naran is still welcoming visitors despite snowfall,’ Hussain Deen, chairman of the hoteliers association, said.
The local communities in Battakundi, Barawai, Bassal and upper parts of the valley have also started migrating to the lower parts of Mansehra and other areas of Hazara division to spend the winter.
A resident of Battakundi said almost half of the families had already moved to the lower parts of Hazara, and the migration would be completed within the next 10 to 15 days.
‘The upper parts of Kaghan Valley will remain closed until May next year, as will traffic between KP and GB,’ the resident said.