MANSEHRA, May 16 Amid acts of terrorism, the scenic valleys of Naran and Kaghan are ray of hope for revival of tourism industry in the NWFP.

“Everything is fine in the valleys, no Taliban, nothing else. Everyone feels free to come here and enjoy nature. It is really a beautiful place,” said Naveed Ahmad, a visitor from Sadiqabad.

But the condition of Balakot-Naran section of the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road, which was destroyed in the October 2005 earthquake, is a big hurdle to attract tourists to this part of the country.

This correspondent on Saturday visited one of the beautiful places of Kaghan valley, Shogran, and realised that due to lack of information about peace and tranquillity in the area, the tourism industry was in trouble and the number of tourists had drastically been decreased following tension in other parts of the province.

Visitors are facing great difficulty to reach the valleys because of the deteriorated condition of the road from Balakot to Kaghan valley. The heaven-like beauty of the area despite the dilapidated condition of the road attracts many tourists to the most peaceful part of the troubled Frontier province, and tourists from Karachi, Lahore and other parts of the country were visiting the region with their families.

Jawad Asghar, a lawyer who had come with his family members from Karachi, said that serenity of the place was worth-watching. But the only thing which perturbed tourists was condition of the road from Balakot to Shogran valley.

Mohammad Tayib, managing director of a local hotel, said that the tourism industry in the valley was victim of misconception about the presence of Taliban in the area which was not true. “History has witnessed no act of terrorism in the valleys,” he claimed.

According to data of the Tourism Development Corporation, in 2004 around 4.8 million domestic and 36,288 foreign tourists visited Kaghan and Naran.