February 3, 2003	Monday	Zilhaj 1,1423

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PESHAWAR, Feb 2: The government is working on a plan to identify and develop some places of historical significance in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas for increased tourism, said official sources.

The NWFP governor’s Fata secretariat has directed the political agents of the seven tribal agencies and the administrations of the four Frontier regions to identify such places which are safe and accessible.

In the past inadequate security and communications systems in Fata have been the main reasons for tourism not being able to take off, an official told Dawn.

A meeting was held in Peshawar recently to discuss the proposal and Sarhad Tourism Corporation (STC) have also been approached for its cooperation, according to the corporation’s general-manager Abdul Samad.

Fata is very rugged, with rivers and a range of mountains some as high as 16,000 feet.

The area lying on the Pakistan-Afghan border has a variety of flora and fauna and rich tribal culture, but has sadly been declared out of bounds for tourists, except the Khyber Pass, Khyber Agency, for security reasons.

The secretariat officials said that after the selection of possible sites the government plans to build rest houses in the area and would also improve communication facilities.

Sources also said that the government had directed the STC to acquire land for a tent village in Kumrat valley, Upper Dir.

The STC would earmark about 50 Kanals in the valley and set up a village, comprising 40 tents, every summer.