The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), in its February-April weather outlook for northern areas, on Monday warned of a “high probability” of glacial lake outburst flood (Glof) in Gilgit-Baltistan, owing to “sustained above normal” temperatures. Glof refers to the sudden release of water and debris from a glacial lake, leading to the loss of lives, property, and livelihoods in mountain communities. Over 7.1 million people in GB and KP are vulnerable to the phenomenon, according to the Ministry of Climate Change. The PMD, in its outlook, noted that due to reduced rain and “persistent clear-sky conditions”, temperatures across GB and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) from Feb 1 to 22 recorded an increase. “Daytime (maximum) temperatures were recorded 3–5°C above normal, while nighttime (minimum) temperatures remained 1–3.5°C above the 1981–2010 climatological average,” the PMD said, adding that the highest warming was recorded in the regions of Gilgit and Bunji. “Chilas and Bunji h...
Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar (sitting, centre), Shahpurji Saklatvala (standing, centre) and Dr K.M. Ashraf (standing, second from left) along with others in London in 1930 | ZMO Library & Archives During the hardening positions in the 1940s of the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Muslim League (ML) on the creation of a new state for the Muslims of India, there were other groups and parties that envisioned different resolutions to the “Muslim Question.” Among these voices was that of the Communist Party of India (CPI), which was aligned with the INC in the late 1930s, yet slowly diverged from it in the 1940s. A major figure who articulated the CPI’s perspective on Muslim politics was Dr Kunwar Mohammad Ashraf — whose contribution has remained somewhat marginal in the received history of this period. THE PALS OF MEWAT Dr Ashraf was of Rajput stock from the Mewat region and hailed from a lower middle-class family that had settled in United Provinces (UP) in the 19th centur...