ISLAMABAD: At least 31 new departments will be established in Murree, formerly a tehsil of Rawalpindi, which was recently upgraded to the status of a new district, comprising two tehsils – Kotli Sattian and Murree – in order to develop the tourism industry and resolve the administrative issues faced by the people of the area.

After the confirmation of Murree as a district, the new administration will have a staff of at least 3,600 people who will be posted in 31 departments to run the district.

The hill station will also get a new office, a district headquarters hospital, district courts, a separate authority for health and education along with a new deputy commissioner office.

MPA Latasab Satti told Dawn that the new district would be based on two tehsils, Murree and Kotli Sattian, and termed it a historic decision of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government, the ruling party in Punjab.

District complex to be set up at centrally located area to facilitate population of both Murree, Kotli Sattian; MPA thanks Imran Khan, CM Elahi for ‘historic’ move

About Kotli Sattian which was upgraded to the tehsil status, he said the area was neglected in the past, but with the recent move, the “beauty and hidden secrets” of the new tehsil would be highlighted.

He said Murree was declared a hill station by the British colonial government and the town’s construction was started in 1851 as a sanatorium for the British troops stationed in the region.

“Since Pakistan’s independence in 1947, Murree had retained its position as a popular hill station noted for its pleasant summer and snow in winter,” he added.

In a bid to promote the tourism industry and facilitate the flow of traffic entering Murree, the lawmaker said a mega project to construct a tourism highway which would be 123 kilometres long was approved by the former PTI government in PSDP [Public Sector Development Programme] 2021-22 to connect Murree, Kotli Sattian, Kahuta and Kallar Syedan.

The lawmaker added that the district complex of the said district would be made at a centrally located area already earmarked to facilitate the local population of both tehsils.

Mr Satti said he was thankful to PTI Chairman Imran Khan, Punjab Chief Minister Parvez Elahi and all the team members for their valuable support for the change in the administrative status of Murree.

A day earlier, CM Parvez-led government decided that the district status would be given to Taunsa Sharif, Murree, Wazirabad, Talagang and Kot Addu to improve administrative matters in the newly-created districts.

It may be noted that in January 2022, the then-provincial government led by Chief Minister Usman Buzdar had decided in principle to upgrade the status of Murree after 23 tourists who were stranded in a snowstorm lost their lives as a result of freezing weather and carbon monoxide poisoning.

At the time, Mr Buzdar also gave the go-ahead to the establishment of two police stations as well as two parking plazas.

Before that, in 2014, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government formed a seven-member committee led by PML-N stalwart Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to give Murree the status of the district. However, the plan did not materialise during the tenure of the PML-N.

Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2022