ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Monday renamed I.J. Principal Road as Karnal Sher Khan Road in honour of a martyred army officer.

Captain Karnal Sher Khan embraced martyrdom during the Kargil war in 1999. He was captain in the Pakistan Army and was posted to 12 Northern Light Infantry Regiment during the Kargil conflict. He was awarded Nishan-i-Haider, the highest military gallantry award, for his valour and courage against the Indian forces.

To pay tributes to his services, the federal cabinet headed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved a summary, renaming I.J. Principal Road as Karnal Sher Khan Road.

The road falls on the border of Islamabad and Rawalpindi and as per the capital’s original master plan, the Rawalpindi authorities were supposed to develop J sectors in their territorial limits while the Capital Development Authority (CDA) was to develop I sectors in its jurisdiction.

The CDA developed sectors I-8, I-9, I-10 and I-11 along this road, but the Rawalpindi authorities did not implement the master plan.

Rhe road, which passed through the middle of I series and proposed J series sectors, was given the name I.J. Principal Road.

“Yes, the federal government has renamed I.J. Principal Road to Karnal Sher Khan Road. The formal notification will be issued in the next few days,” a senior bureaucrat said.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2023