Back in school, an Urdu essay titled Mera Gaon (My village) was included as part of our class VI syllabus. It was a hot favourite among students.

The writer, while praising his village, which was situated in Punjab, described the past and present lifestyles and daily routines of villagers. He did not narrate any problems or miseries faced by inhabitants. In his village, people lived great lives and had no worries whatsoever. My class fellows and I were always very impressed and fascinated with the life of this village, and described it as heaven on earth.

Not that we had it less heavenly either: we lived in the valley of Nagri Totial, situated to the southeast of Abbottabad, west of Murree, and its eastern border meeting Ghora Gali in Murree. At an elevation of 4,081 feet, the valley is dotted with colourful iron rooftops, green plains and lofty trees.

Nagri Totial can also be reached from Abbottabad and Rawalpindi. From Rawalpindi, one has to turn left at Ghora Gali point on the main Rawalpindi-Murree road, and after a 30-minute drive, one has to turn right, short of Lora town, onto the main Lora-Abbottabad road.

Once a place of stunning beauty, the destruction and desolation of the Galliyat are spearheaded by the timber mafia and aided by government apathy.

Lora town is the hub of commercial activities for nearby villages, and also houses the police station of the area. Jeeps or taxis can be hired easily from Lora town, for onward travel into the galliyats.

About a 20-minute drive from Lora town, after crossing the beautiful bridge on River Haroo, one finally enters the lush green, picturesque valley of Nagri Totial.

The valley serves as the centre-point for political and business activities for dozens of adjacent villages. It is also in this valley that much of the famous Dhoond tribe of the Abassi family resides; the majority of the Abassis are descendants of the late Great Sardar Totta Khan and late Sardar Dehmat Khan, chieftains of the Dhoond tribe. Gujar, Chaudhary, Syed, Awan and Mehmood Khanies are the other tribes who live in the valley peacefully.

Seated from left: Khan Bahadur Abdul Rehman Khan, chief of Totial Abbasi tribe of Nagri Totial with Liaqat Ali Khan, Quaid-i-Azam and other top PML leaders; extreme right: Ziauddin, owner of Ziauddin Hospital.—Photo by author

Perhaps it is a personal bias, but I’d always argue that in the picturesque Galliyat belt of district Abbottabad, Nagri Totial is the most awe-inspiring.

The British had named these valleys as green streets due to their thick forest cover. Later on, each green street turned into a “Galli” — hence the modern names of Nathia Galli, Donga Galli, Kooza Galli, Changla Galli, Khaira Galli and Ghora Galli among others.