ISLAMABAD, Nov 17: The Patriata Hill Resort, also known as New Murree, needs improvements for making it a more joyous spot for the visitors. Thousands of visitors, who throng this resort on special events and during holidays, are often caught in rush as facilities here prove to be insufficient.

Traffic jams and insufficient number of chair lift and cable cars at Patriata leave the visitors stranded for hours. Mostly, the local transporters plying pick-ups cause the traffic jams. It has been observed that they never listen to anybody, rather respond arrogantly whenever asked to follow the rules.

A visit to Patriata sometimes proves to be a bit pinching experience due to overcrowding. For visitors, to wait for two to three hours in queues to get tickets during rush is a routine matter.

The presence of police in the area is not different from that of other parts as no one could find them when needed. After people finish fighting, these "custodians of law" appear to ask curiously about the incident.

They are least bothered if unruly youth irk women, take their turn in a queue and talk insane with no regard to the presence of women. Buying tickets is not difficult, but boarding and alighting from the chair-lift and the cable car is no less than a Herculean task.

Administrators on the spot are found trying to streamline the affairs but the insufficient capacity often pain the visitors. Staffers try to accommodate them but crowd management sometimes prove difficult due to lack of proper barricades.

Intruders often benefit from helplessness of women and children, and those who do not want to enter into brawls. "How can we fight with these unruly chaps in presence of women," a visitor, Rashid Mahmood, said.

He said it was a good place to visit and enjoy, but more staffers and facilities were needed to enable visitors enjoy their trip. PTDC stalls have been set up at the main and sub-stations of the resort with directions not to buy edibles and drinks from local vendors.

However, vendors roam around freely, selling different items and persuading children to have drinks in cold weather. They are often rude and quarrelsome with visitors when asked not to tempt children to buy from them or chase visitors. Another visitor from Faisalabad said ticket money was affordable but its ill-planned sale often created a mess and proved to be a source of headache. -APP