William, Kate visit climate change-hit north
Northern areas have witnessed flash floods in recent years
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and his wife Kate, continued to amaze people during their visit to Pakistan.
Both wore traditional Chitrali outfits as they arrived in the former princely state of Chitral, which is considered one of the most scenic places in the world, at an elevation of 1,494. While Prince William wore the Chitrali hat and a coat, Kate wore the hat and a shawl, which was also worn by Prince William’s mother, the late Princes Diana, during her visit to the scenic valley in 1991.
The British Royal couple was surprised when they received the photo album and a book of Princess Diana’s visit to Chitral.
“Fantastic,” the prince remarked, as he sifted through the pages of the book. The residents also gifted an embroidered coat to Prince William and a shawl to Kate. The couple arrived in Pakistan on October 14 on a five-day visit. On the third day of their visit, the Duke and Duchess were visiting the foothills of the Hindu Kush mountain range to witness the devastating effects of climate change, which is one of the key areas of focus of their visit. During their time in Chitral, they were also scheduled to visit a site affected by a devastating flood in 2015.
“They are visiting Chitral to “see the impact of flash flood on local villages” in the valley, Royal Correspondent for the Sun, Emily Andrews, tweeted.
The entire region that now forms the Chitral district was an independent monarchical state until 1895, when the British negotiated a treaty with its hereditary ruler, the Mehtar, under which Chitral became a semi-autonomous princely state within the Indian Empire. Chitral retained this status even after its accession to Pakistan in 1947, finally being made an administrative district of Pakistan in 1969, when Chitral ceased to exist as a princely state.
The British royals travelled by helicopter to a glacier in Broghil Valley National Park to see the effects of climate change in one of the most glaciated areas of the world.
‘Impending catastrophe’
The Duke of Cambridge called the glacial melt an “impending catastrophe” in a speech delivered at a glittering reception in Islamabad late Tuesday. The couple met with environmental experts to discuss the melting before going on to spend their afternoon with the Kalash - an ancient, polytheistic tribe who celebrate their gods with music and dance.
The verdant, plunging valleys of the northern Chitral district have long attracted tourists for their natural beauty and their brush with legend as the home of the Kalash, who claim ancestry from Alexander the Great. Activists have campaigned to preserve the traditions of the diminishing tribe, now estimated to number around only 3,000 people, making them Pakistan’s smallest religious minority.
Kensington Palace has called the five-day trip, which ends tomorrow, their “most complex” tour to date.
The couple had lunch Tuesday with Prime Minister Imran Khan — an old friend of William’s mother, the late Princess Diana.