CHITRAL, Feb 15: With the commencement of work on the Lowari tunnel project, the value of real estate in Chitral has increased manifold.

Spread over 14,850 square kilometres, Chitral is the largest district of the province area-wise. However, only four per cent of the area in the district comprises plains and cultivable land.

The Chitral town, in particular, has been faced with a growing influx of people from all around the district. As a result, over hundreds of acres of fertile land in and around the town, now stand houses to accommodate the throng of immigrants who have settled here for employment and business purposes.

The cost of land has increased several times over the years, but the launch of work on the much-delayed Lowari tunnel project winged it to unprecedented heights. It is generally believed that the inauguration of the project in July last served to catalyse the cost of land.

A local property dealer told Dawn that a chakorum -- a local unit equivalent to quarter of an acre -- of land in the town now costs Rs2 million while it was worth less than Rs1 million some two years ago.

“Given a large gap between the demand and availability, no price is considered high by the buyers,” he said.

Locals believe it is the interest of the outsiders in plots of land in Chitral town -- the district headquarters which offers all civic facilities -- which is causing exorbitant increase in real estate value.

An awareness campaign has been launched by some quarters, stressing the locals not to sell their properties to outsiders. Even the district nazim has urged the locals to compete with outsiders in business and not to sell their lands.

In this regard, the examples of Murree, Kaghan, Kalam and other hilly resorts are cited where almost the whole of business has been taken over by outsiders while the locals are merely working as their servants.