MANSEHRA: Tourists remained stranded for over an hour after mudslides blocked the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad (MNJ) Road in the Khanian area of Kaghan Valley on Saturday night.

Passengers travelling between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan and within Mansehra district remained stranded on both sides of the road till the debris was cleared and traffic was restored.

“The Kunhar River and local streams swelled following heavy rainfall in Kaghan Valley. Mudslides carrying boulders blocked the MNJ Road, but we immediately dispatched heavy machinery to clear the debris and restore traffic,” Balakot assistant commissioner Hasrat Khan told reporters on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the district administrations of Mansehra, Upper and Lower Kohistan and Torghar issued separate advisories urging residents to stay away from rivers, streams and flood-prone areas.

The warnings were issued in light of the latest advisory from the Provincial Disaster Management Authority, which has warned of the risk of glacial lake outburst floods, landslides and flash floods amid continuing monsoon rains.

ROAD REOPENS: The main road linking Manoor Valley with the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road has been reopened to four-wheel traffic after remaining closed for seven months due to flash floods and landslides.

“This important eight-kilometre road, which provides the only four-wheel access to the people of Manoor Valley, was washed away by flash floods last year. It has now been reopened after ramps were rebuilt at stream crossings and debris was cleared from the mountain track,” local MPA Munir Hussain Lughmani told reporters on Sunday.

He said Manoor Valley, a paradise for nature lovers, still lacked adequate tourism infrastructure despite its immense natural beauty.

“We are taking measures not only to improve road infrastructure for residents but also to attract tourists to the valley,” he said.

Mr Lughmani said work on blacktopping the main road linking the valley with the MNJ Road was underway with an estimated cost of over Rs600 million. “Once this road is completed, Manoor Valley will attract a large number of tourists from across Pakistan and abroad during the summer season,” he said.

He added that the provincial government, on his request, had allocated billions of rupees for development projects in Balakot tehsil.

“The execution of two hydropower projects, with a combined generation capacity of around 1,100 megawatts, is also nearing completion. These projects will play a significant role in the prosperity and development of Balakot tehsil and the rest of the district,” he said.

Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2026