MULTAN, May 3: Two companies have almost completed survey for the installation of chairlift/cable car at Fort Munro, the only hill station of south Punjab in the Suleman Range mountains, some 85km from Dera Ghazi Khan.

A Tourism Development Corporation Punjab (TDCP) spokesman told APP on Thursday that Chief Minister Pervaiz Elahi had granted approval and issued instruction for the completion of the recreational project involving a huge funding at the hill station located at a height of over 6400 feet.

The companies, one from Balochistan and the other from Punjab, have almost completed the survey and are likely to submit their reports to the government.

Preparation of the feasibility would begin after assessing and scrutinizing reports from the companies by the TDCP experts. The PC-1 would be prepared on the basis of the feasibility study and project execution would begin thereafter.

The spokesman said it would be premature to say whether the project would include cable car, chairlift or both and what route it would take. But the most likely route of the chairlift would be from Khar, a valley at the foot of hill station, to the executive house of PA, then to Trimman lake, onward to TDCP Motel near Dames lake and then back to Khar.

He said that survey teams have also found a source i.e water reservoir, for water supply at a point near Trimman lake located between two hill torrents. Rainwater is also accumulated at this small reservoir.

“Water supply and infrastructure were the two main problems in way of promotion of tourism to this area and government has already initiated many schemes from road construction to supply of water through tube wells and an old water supply scheme to solve these problems,” he said.

Fort Munro is a cost-wise cheap alternative to Murree for Tourists.—APP