Scouts begin walk along historical pony track
Hunza, May 31: The Ismaili Boy Scouts have started a 6-days Adventure and Environment walk from Gulmit, Gojal to Gilgit city, along the historical pony track. The walk is organized by Gulmit Boy Scouts Group, to celebrate the 100 years of world scouting and commemorate the Golden Jubilee celebrations of His Highness, Prince Karim Aga Khan.
A mega event was organised, in the premises of F.G. Boys High School Gulmit, to open the walk activities and give farewell to scouts. A large number of scouts, community notables and parents participated the event. The speakers said that Scouting is playing the role of nursery organisation in producing dynamic leaders for civil society.
About 55 scouts of age group 17-25 years from different villages will walk about 170 km long track to reach Gilgit city. The Scouts will camp and held gatherings with elders and youth in Ahmedabad, Murtazabad, Hussainabad and Nomal villages to exchange historical experiences and oral traditions about hardships an difficulties in travelling and communication in the region. The scouts will also participate in the activities of world environment day and create awareness about AIDS, drug abuses and other issues.
This historical pony track was constructed during 1897– 1901 after the Hunza state fell under the British rule in December 1891. This track improved travelling to these lonely mountain gorges and the traditions hidden in these valleys for centuries was exposed to external world. Later on, the construction of a jeepable road during 1957 and KKH during 1978 connected the region with other parts of the world.
The vision of the walk is to use youth as a change force to harness unity, peace and development in the region and create awareness about the promotion and preservation of historical heritages and oral traditions with fun and pleasurable experiences. The walk will also offer an adventure for the youth and explore a potential tracking route for the tourists. It will also provide first hand historical and cultural information to youth from elders.
The Scouts will also visit Chinar Bagh Gilgit, to pay tributes to the heroes of the Gilgit-Baltistan independence from Dogra Raj. The closing ceremony will be held at Shah Karim Hostel Gilgit on June 5 in order to link the day with the celebrations World environmental Day.
what a thinking and idea i am personally very happy to know that gulmit sout unit is orgnizing this event congrate to the participents of the adventure treak may mowla give them more strgenth and power to make the end of thier jurney and thier jurney will be safe and sound till gilgit this sprit is showing unity among souts and will make more relation,s with other sout units in lower hunza region this is a unique initiative taken by Gulmit Scout Unit to arrange this i hope this will bring a good result in terms of relation,s unity,and exchange of views with other,s ect.this is needed to involve students in such activities this is globlized world expection know adays i congrate all the orgnizer,s and participents of the jurney and pray for thier batter health to reach thier distination safe&sound…..
Didar Karim Bari
NUML university islamabad
Congratulations for the all scouters and there leaders.
this trek will inshallah give well awareness to the other communities about brother hood, unity and importance of nature.
i will suggest in future if Gulmit scouts will spread there efforts towards other parts of Gojal and even in regional level Hunza, to let them take part in such positive youth social gatherings.
Any way i salute the organizers and community leaders for arranging such events.
Warm Regarads,
Rahmat Karim
ICD, Dubai UAE.
Great job guys,Keep going as the aim with which you have embarked on shows your strong determination to travel the journey of many miles passing on the message of team work,leadership,strong commitment,devotion and sacrificialness.
Keep flying and my very heartiest prayers for your successful journey.
Aslam Ghalib
Lahore,Pakistan
The idea is great and the timing is also perfect as it is need of the time to bridge gapes within the community first as there have been huge gaps created by the nevative politics based on ethnic, tribal and religious lines by the opportunists who claim to be politicians.
Together we can change the environment including physical, social, economic and political environment by creating linkages between our youth. We need to be proactive towards the negative propegenda of different groups who have their wested interests on the forefront of every move.
If we remain devided, we will leg behind in this fast moving world, so we need such events to make contacts with youth of the region to move forward with clear vision to create a progressive civil society based on peace, justice, material wel-being, quality education, best quality health care, best technology based infrastructure to remain connected with the world.
The innitiative of the Boy Scouts Gruop may be the first step towards acheiving the above.
Keep going……..Be God with you.
The walk which is already on its half way is a ‘mega event’ organized by the Ismaili Boy Scouts Gojal. Let me congratulate all those who conceived this wonderful idea and made it a reality.
Participants of the walk would definitely appreciate the courage and strength of our elders who use to walk on the same pony trek before the construction of KKH. Furthermore, the entire caravan of youngsters have the great opportunity to meet our Jammat and even the sister communities on all the way from Gulmit to Gilgit.
Through this venture they would succeed to create awareness in themselves as well as among the communities whom they meet and interact with. Moreover, having a six day walk with a some load on their back having no prior experience of such a physical hardship and passing the treacherous gorge of the Karakorums must be a tiresome but full of adventure and thrill for these young chaps.
Scouts claps Let’s go!!!!!!!
I wish them a safe journey!
Iqbal Barcha
AKU-IED
Congrate to Gulmit Council for the Golden Jubilee intiatives to organize such opportunities to our scouts to go through thier history and to realize the chalanges and dificulties that our fathers and forfathers have faced in 60s. and Mawla Hazir Imam visited Hunza first time in 1960 through the jeep raod, and the change abruptly seen in the area after the constrution of KKH to China.