TOURISM is the bread and butter of almost 70 per cent of the people of Gilgit-Baltistan. Unfortunately tourism in the area was adversely affected after 9/11. The terrorists attack on tourists in Manga Parbat worsened the situation.

The situation became better after the reconstruction of the Karakoram Highway. More than 1.7 million local and foreign tourists visited the area in 2017 when the federal government decided to ban foreigners from visiting the area without an NOC. This has once again severely affected the earnings of the local population.

The federal government has announced visa relaxation and visa on arrival facility to citizens of 50 countries as a measure to promote tourism and investment in the country.

In view of the above, the government should also ease travel restrictions for Gilgit-Baltistan besides promoting it as a tourist destination. This will help people of the area to provide for their families with ease.

Khawar Abbas
Karachi

Published in Dawn, January 29th, 2019