On thin ice: Khalti Lake becomes a perilous playground for children

Locals say the unofficial ‘skating rink’ opens many tourist opportunities in winter but are ignored by govt

GILGIT:

For an outsider, it looks like a matter of life and death. A deep, frozen lake on which parents let children play without a care for their safety.

Freezing temperatures in Gilgit-Baltistan have turned the upper part of Khalti Lake into an ice sheath. Situated 120 kilometres away from Gilgit, the lake is between 30 to 70 feet deep, depending on where one stands. If the frozen surface breaks, the children who slip and slide in merriment on the tricky top would fall right into the lake.

The world is your playground

However, the residents of Gupis tehsil, Ghizer district are less cynical. They are not afraid of lake’s depth or the danger it could put their children in. Small villages in the region do not have playgrounds where children can expend their energies. The lake is a makeshift playground for children.

“It was a mind-boggling sight to see children playing fearlessly on the frozen lake,” said Abdul Rehman Bukhari, a resident of Gilgit who visited the lake on Friday. “They did not seem to care about the risks involved.”

According to Munawar Khan, a resident of Ghizer, the lake has a charm of its own for children. “It is extremely dangerous,” he agrees. “But there is nothing we can do about it. The thrill of playing on the lake’s surface overshadows the fear of death.”

Fatal attraction

All year round, Khalti Lake provides countless benefits to the region. During the summer, it is a source for fresh water while in winter the lake turns into a (high-risk) football pitch. As the temperature plummets 10 to 15 degrees below freezing point, tournaments are organised and local players come together for an adventurous, if not extreme, game of football.

These winter tournaments can become a major attraction for tourists. But, the government has failed to take suitable measures to turn this dream of profitable tourism into a reality. At this critical juncture, the biting cold of winter and the absence of proper facilities in G-B have kept tourists at bay. As a result, the lake remains largely neglected and has not generated revenue from tourism.

It is widely believed Khalti Lake is the region’s equivalent of Lac de Joux in Switzerland. However, it never became a popular tourist destination like its Swiss counterpart.

Lac de Joux is the largest lake in Switzerland. It is located in Jura Mountains in western Switzerland and has become a popular tourist spot, especially in winter when the lake is completely frozen. During this season, Lac de Joux turns into a huge ice skating rink and attracts a large number of tourists.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 11^th, 2015.