Call to develop Haripur waterfall as tourist destination.

Byline: Mohammad Sadaqat

HARIPUR -- A waterfall in Jabri union council has potential to promote tourism in neglected parts of Haripur district if it attracts the attention of the authorities.

The Noori waterfall, locally known as 'Noori de tahand' (Noori's pond) is situated near the Peena village, about 6 kilometres from the district headquarters.

In the absence of a proper road, people walk for a couple of kilometres using the difficult hilly terrain to reach the waterfall to enjoy nature. 'But only the physically strong young men trained at hiking could do so,' Waqar Ali, a local journalist, said.

Surrounded by green hillocks, the 3-metre-high waterfall presents a unique look by dropping milky water in a roughly 8 by 2 feet pond that changes its colour into dark green. About six to small and large-sized natural springs upstream feed the waterfall.

However, according to locals, water stops falling for a couple of months during winter when snow covers the hills, especially the natural springs in the catchment area.

Ahmed Khan, a resident of Jabri village, said he heard from his elders that the waterfall was over a century-old and was named after Noor Bibi, a woman who used to wash clothes and drowned in the pond under the waterfall, thus the local elders named it as the Noori waterfall.

However, villager Maqbool Ahmed claimed that his grandfather used to tell them that its milky...