THE Karakoram Highway — also known as the silk route — is the only road integrating Pakistan’s northern areas with the rest of the country. However, despite its vital importance with regards to promoting tourism in the country and its geostrategic importance, the road is also a death trap for people using it.

There have been many tragic accidents on it as either the rules are ignored by careless drivers or the vehicles are lacking in safety measures. Another major issue relates to the frequent landsliding and flooding owing to the glacial lake outburst flow. It is because of such mishaps that passengers sometimes are stranded for days until the authorities can re-open the highway.

The local authorities need to devise contingency plans to deal with such situations and to provide care to stranded passengers when needed.

Sajid Ali

Gilgit-Baltistan

Published in Dawn, October 10th, 2020