ISLAMABAD, Sept 26: World Tourism Day would be celebrated across the world including Pakistan on Wednesday.

September 27 marks the global celebration of tourism sanctioned by the United Nation’s World Tourism Organization and recognized for the first time by the Travel Industry Association (TIA), this annual event fosters awareness among the international community of the importance of travel and tourism and how this important industry touches us all.

It was established at the third session of the WTO General Assembly in Torremolinos, Spain, in September 1979. Under the umbrella theme ‘Tourism Enriches’ the World Tourism Day provides a platform for countries and communities worldwide to acknowledge the power of travel on all levels: social, cultural, political and economic.

Travel and tourism keeps the world economy on the move. Pakistan’s main attractions included adventure tourism in the Northern Areas, cultural and archaeological tourism as found in Taxila, Moenjodaro, Harrappa, and early Muslim and Mughal heritage at Multan, Lahore, Thatta, Peshawar and Swat.

Gilgit-Baltistan has the greatest concentration of the highest peaks in the world. It has 5 peaks over 8,000 metres including the world’s second highest, K-2 (Chogori, 8611 m), 29 peaks of over 7,500 metres and 121 of over 7,000 metres.

Harappa was the first of the Indus Valley Civilization sites to be discovered. Located 186 km south-west of Lahore, Harappa is reached via Sahiwal. Harappa was discovered in 1920-21, but through the ages the site was quarried for bricks and most of the buildings excavated so far are in poor condition.

At Moenjodaro (Mound of dead) in the west bank of the Indus in Sindh one can see the remains of one of the earliest and most developed urban civilizations of the ancient world.

Tourism Development Corporation Punjab (TDCP) has arranged different colourful programmes to celebrate World Tourism Day.

—APP