Moon sighting problem

Once again, people in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa started the month of Ramazan a day before the rest of the country. Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai of the famous Qasim Ali Khan Mosque in Peshawar announced on Sunday that six witnesses had reported seeing the Ramazan moon, therefore, Monday would be the first day of fasting. The local moon sighting committee in Mardan also followed suit, saying it had received four accounts of the moon's appearance.
The provincial government, which had gone along with the Qasim Khan Mosque last year, when it declared Eid ahead of the other parts of the country, announced it had nothing to do with the mosque's decision. Still, many relied on the Qasim Khan Mosque pronouncement.
The Federal government had promised it would not allow confusion this year over the moon sighting issue, and that people everywhere in the country would start Ramazan observances the same day and celebrate the Eid festival together. Unfortunately, that was not to be the case. Notably, some people in KP also celebrated Shab-e-Barat, which falls in mid-Shaban - the month preceding Ramazan - a day earlier than the rest of the country. Had the authorities concerned taken due notice of the variation at that time, probably things would have been different.
The issue urges a serious rethink of the manner the moon sighting is determined. It is generally believed that the problem is caused because some in KP wish to follow Saudi Arabia, which as per the Islamic lunar calendar, is ahead of Pakistan. But considering that the moon rises in the west, and like Saudi Arabia, KP is located in the western extreme of this country, it is possible that it is first seen there. That though is something for the experts to determine.
In this age of science, the exact moment of the moon's appearance is predicable with hundred percent accuracy. In fact, as a BR report had forecast, the new moon was to be sighted on Monday, and its age at evening civil twilight (ECTL) would be 44 hours and two minutes, and that it could be observed for 62 minutes after sunset. Our report further pointed out that at ECTL, the moon would be at an altitude of seven degrees and 11 minutes, and at an azimuth of 272 degrees and 31 minutes. Clearly, science has the best answer to the present predicament. However, dominated as it is by the literalist school of thought, this society remains insistent on seeing the moon with the eye - thankfully though, no longer the naked eye.
Under the existing arrangements we have a Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee with sub-committees in different parts of the country, which are supposed to collect evidence of moon sighting from anywhere in the country. More often than not, the central committee relies on reports from middle and south eastern parts of the country. If it is always in the western most province where people claim observing new Ramazan and Eid moons, it would make sense for the committee to focus its resources and attention on KP. For, that is where the moon is supposed to appear first.