MUZAFFARABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore on Saturday undertook an extensive visit to the state capital, inspecting ongoing development works and pledging swift action to address the city’s long-standing civic and traffic issues.

Residents welcomed the prime minister warmly as he toured various locations, beginning with an inspection of the under-construction flyover outside the Combined Military Hospital (CMH).

Officials briefed him that one track of the flyover would become functional within the next ten days. PM Rathore directed the authorities to ensure its completion within the stipulated timeframe, assuring that the government would provide the required funds.

Speaking to reporters after offering fateha at the grave of his brother-in-law, Lt-Col Asif Ali Awan Shaheed, in the Plate neighbourhood, the prime minister said Muzaffarabad was “the face of the state” and improving its condition was among his top priorities. A comprehensive traffic management plan would be formulated and implemented, he added.

He expressed full confidence that the federal government would extend complete support for AJK’s development projects. “The schemes included in the federal PSDP for AJK will be implemented without delay, and I will personally meet the prime minister of Pakistan in this regard,” he said.

He added that the Mansehra–Muzaffarabad Motorway (M-4) project, as well as the Lohar Gali Tunnel, were also on his government’s priority list.

“We will try to initiate projects in Muzaffarabad that bring direct ease to people’s lives. We may have limited time, but the present government’s team is a ‘T-20 team’ that will perform by hitting fours and sixes,” he remarked.

At the Plate graveyard, he announced the installation of lights and the provision of water facilities. Also in Plate, he inaugurated a commercial centre amid loud slogans in his favour.

During the visit, PM Rathore laid floral wreaths and offered fateha at the shrines of former presidents K.H. Khurshid and Mirwaiz Molvi Muhammad Yousuf Shah outside the Municipal Corporation building. He also offered fateha at the nearby graves of veteran leader Raja Muhammad Haider Khan and former prime minister Khan Abdul Hameed Khan.

Inside the Municipal Corporation building, Mayor Sikandar Gilani and Deputy Mayor Khalid Awan briefed him on municipal affairs, while PPP workers accorded him an enthusiastic welcome.

Mr Rathore said the city’s biggest challenge was solid waste management and pledged early completion of the ongoing project. “I have a special bond with Muzaffarabad, inherited from my late father, whom this city had once elected as MLA,” he added.

During the city tour, the prime minister offered fateha at the graves of several activists and community leaders, including Saqib Riaz — who was killed during protests on the call of the Joint Awami Action Committee — former Central Bar Association president Anjum Nisar Mir, and former chief conservator of forests Syed Ali al-Husnain Fatmi.

Earlier, in the Bela Noor Shah neighbourhood, the prime minister visited the residence of former minister Muhammad Hanif Awan, where he offered condolences before visiting his grave.

Minister for Forests Sardar Javed Ayoub, PPP leader Mukhtar Abbasi and dozens of PPP workers accompanied him during the visit.

Published in Dawn, November 23rd, 2025