alochistan looks set for a long harsh winter this year. The chill is particularly biting in the evenings.

For some people, winter always brings happiness. Traditional local families welcome the longer nights which allow for companionship and discussions on poetry and literature. But there is also another side to how people react to the harsh winters in the area.

This time, like in the past, many people in Balochistan may have prayed for a delay in the onset of cold. The main reason for the prayers is the socio-economic conditions of these people.

Basic facilities needed to withstand winter chill are either missing or hard to afford. There’s no gas in many areas of the province. In urban areas, very few neighbourhoods have the gas pressure needed for cooking and water heating. This forces most people to meet their energy needs by looking for environmentally harmful fuels.

The only practical options are LPG cylinders and wood obtained by cutting trees. It should indeed be a cause of concern for the local authorities that the province is losing its meager greenery. The mountains, too, are devoid of natural habitats. Therefore, cutting trees for wood is clearly not a sustainable idea.

Theoretically speaking, there is another option to address the non-availability of natural gas: making heating arrangements using electricity. However, this is not a practical alternative in Balochistan. In rural areas, the average duration of load shedding per day is more than 14 hours. The average number of load shedding hours increases with the decline in temperature.

Many who live in the urban areas can no longer afford electricity due to the recent energy price hike. Work is hard to come by for daily-wage workers due to freezing temperatures. The lower the temperature, the lesser the opportunities for work. A majority of the people in Balochistan belong to the lower-middle income class.

During the months of January and February, the number of vehicles on the highways can be counted on fingers. The number of people leaving their homes also drops.

Many who live in the urban areas cannot afford electricity due to the recent energy price hike. Work is hard to come by for daily wagers due to the freezing temperatures. The lower the temperature, the less the opportunities for work.

Most of Balochistan’s districts have sparse populations. The construction of houses often falls short of standards laid down in building codes. For the last 15 months, there has been an exponential increase in prices. This has exposed the vulnerability of the poor in Pakistan in general and in Balochistan in particular.

The educational institutions in Balochistan have announced vacations starting in the middle of December. If the academic session is extended till the end of December, the teachers and students face difficulties continuing their academic activities due to the lack of heated classrooms.

In January, when the temperatures fall below freezing point, the mountains of Balochsitan are covered with snow. In the Koh-i-Sulaiman region bordering on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, landslides following precipitation cause frequent road blocks around the Dha-Nasar mountain.

At times, the roads remain closed for longer than three days. Not only are the cargo trucks stuck, the students travelling to and from KP are also stranded. During the last winters, following heavy rains, Balochistan was disconnected from other parts of the country for seven days.

The poor not only wants the winter to start later, they also want it to end soon. It is noteworthy that with the economic downturn their capacity to survive in winters has visibly diminished.

While many of us enjoy the winters, we must not forget those who have limited capacity to survive in cold weather. Whether it is in the form of money or material, individual assistance does matter. The provision of warm clothes and blankets by some non-governmental organisations is commendable. Nonetheless, it is the prime responsibility of the government to address the needs of the people during hardship, including winters in Balochistan.

The indications are that this winter is going to be severe.

The writer is a freelancer based in Pishin, Balochistan. His handle on X is @DawoodKhanHere