WINTER SPORTS FESTIVAL YASIN VALLEY 

First time in the entire history  which I have been part of, back in my birth place Yasin some random guys without any recognizable support from any institution whether government or private successfully held a winter festival . To be specific , this event was held in a small village chumarkhan that is located on the upper side of taus valley , and this place is like a junction of three villages , behind it is the narrowed valley of Nazbar , and on the left side of this village thodas is located.

I think this description will give you some thing to imagine. After the government banned the winter festivals which were going to take place in khalti (Ghizer) , the enthusiastic youth of Yasin which were accompanied by some experienced persons of their respective fields made this event possible. I will not specificy the fews who were leading the role , but I must generally emphasize their contributions. Why I think that this event was important for a rough area like Yasin which doesn’t have even basic infrastructure to support the people dwelling there. Firstly, without any hesitations I want to elaborate that it will give some perspective to the rusted minds about what the world is heading towards nowadays. Yasin is a place of utmost beauty, and it has the capacity to make its people economically independent if some considerations are given to it

It is not easy to make such events functional with full participation of female  in an area where patriarchal thoughts are roaming like this genie of Aladdin. Trust me , the people who organized this event might have gone through many rotten criticism from a section of the society.

 Let me make some exaggerations to this festival  . This festival started with a small field which was provided water to make the surface icy , because of the temperature which drops to -20 degree centigrades sometimes, it is possible to get a ground with floor of ice. The ice hockey which is one of the most played winter games around the world got its name a place in Gilgit Baltistan after few events which were held in Hunza few years earlier. I don’t need to elaborate Hunza to the audience because it is not a name , it’s a brand.

Let’s get back to the festival , this winter almost every corner of Yasin was covered with snow , the place of the festival too.The cheerings of the people , encouraging the players worth a moment to remember in memories of the year. Despite the harsh weather people from all segments of life joined the event and rejoiced. Gilgit Baltistan is a tourist attraction because of its mountains, pastures, historic places, the four seasons and the like . PM Imran Khan presses hard in his speeches when it comes to tourism in Pakistan. Yasin could be another thriller in the story of promoting tourism in far flung areas.

To add on, there are few activities which are catching the eyes of the locals in terms of investing their money in tourism industry which includes hoteling, roads ,  and few picnic spots. Winter sports like ice hockey can add the soft image of this area and to be precise Yasin has alot more to explore.From passes which connects Yasin to areas like Chitral, Ishkomen , and the darkut pass which connects it to Afghanistan-Tajikistan,to the mountains which contain varieties of minerals is giving a great economic perspective to the local and foreign investors.

A bee has no time to be unhappy, I quote this quotation many a times because I think it has an essence of reality. From the well being of a society to the crime rate everything is directly influenced by the activities in which the society is indulge at large. Activities of all kinds like educational, economic, sports, arts and the like will indulge people for a life worth living , this will not give the people the time to get involve in any heinous deeds . Sports will boost their spirits to perform at national and international levels. This activities like winter sports will bring harmony , new horizons to look at future, reduce gender districimination , and will also make people health concious . There are many things we need to make correct about our homes but these organizers have done it on community level. Salute to you guys for your  positive contributions, your time, and the management.