Comment by Riaz Haq on June 9, 2019 at 9:42am

$1.315b Karakoram Highway project to complete next year (2020)

https://nation.com.pk/28-Jan-2019/-1-315b-karakoram-highway-project...

The travel time from Havelian to Thakot will reduce from existing four hours to 1.5 hours after the completion of $1.315 billion Karakoram Highway (KKH) Phase-II, an early harvest project under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) framework, next year.

The road infrastructure project being completed at an estimated cost of US$ 1.315 billion, is likely to be completed in the year 2020, according to official sources on Sunday.

The project is located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province with a total length of 118km, of which 39km is an expressway with subgrade width of 24.7m, and 79km is Class-II highway with subgrade width of 12.3m ( minimum widths of lanes are generally between 2.5 to 3.25 metres (8.2 to 10.7 ft).)

After the completion of the project, the travel time from Havelian to Thakot will be reduced from 4 to 1.5 hours.

Giving further details of the project, the sources informed that commercial contract was signed on December 22, 2015, between National Highway Authority and China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC).

The project includes 105 bridges among which 60 are large bridges, 42 medium and three small bridges. There are six tunnels, among which two on expressway and four on Class-II highway.

The groundbreaking ceremony was held on April 28, 2016. On the same day, the Pakistani Government and the Export-Import Bank of China signed the government to government loan agreement, and it came into force on June 24, 2016. The project formally commenced on September 1, 2016. The construction period is 42 months.

This project is to build a new road, not an up gradation of the existing road. As it is located in the mountainous area with complicated terrain, the construction work is extremely difficult. The milestones on tunnels, bridges, subgrades are all ahead of schedule. Two tranches of advance payment have been released in 2016.

Up to now, 2071 Pakistani staff have been employed on the project which has created many indirect jobs and played a positive role in the local economic development. The project also provides a great opportunity for cultivating and training a large number of engineering talents.

In terms of environmental protection, the executing company has hired a well-known local third-party environmental monitoring agency, and strictly complied with the local standard.

Comment by Riaz Haq on June 9, 2019 at 10:21am

TCKP's Camping Pods, Tented Villages In KP's Hilly Areas Attract Influx Of Tourists During Eid Days


https://www.urdupoint.com/en/pakistan/tckps-camping-pods-tented-vil...


The camping pods and tented villages setup by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Tourism Corporation(TCKP) has attracted influx of tourists in Hazara and Malakand divisions during week long vacations of Eidul Fitr.

The tourists were provided quality accommodations facilities in the 2-4 bed camping pods and tent villages in scores of tourist attractions places and resorts, including Bishigram in Swat, Sharan in Kaghan Mansehra, Thandiani in Abbottabad, Yakh Tangai in Shangla and Sheikhbadin in Lakki Marwat at affordable prices.

These pods have already been renovated by the TCKP ahead of Eidul Fitr to facilitate foreign and domestic tourists during current summer season, Director General TCKP Junaid Khan told APP on Sunday.

He said the idea of camping pods in remote scenic spots have remained highly successful where best accommodations facilitates were provided to thousands of tourists families at minimum prices compare to private hotels.

The pods were set up in all those tourists' spots where hotels and motels were not available.

He maintained that camping pods and tented villages in tourists' spots was the continuation of a process initiated by the TCKP to facilitate tourists and promote tourism in every nook and corner of the province.

As results of present Govt goal-oriented policies, he said, millions of domestic tourists have flooded to northern KP including Swat, Dir, Shangla, Buner, Chitral, Mansehra, Khagan, Naran, Abbottabad, Thandyani, Shogran, Galyat and other hilly areas where camping pods and villages proved were proved as a great blessing for them.

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The tourists were provided every facility at the camping pod including play land for kids, beds for sleeping, wash rooms, accommodations and kitchen.

The KP government had also provided other facilities including parking lots, washrooms, kids play areas and tent villages to tourists at tourists resorts.

The tourism resorts in Malakand division including Swat, Dir Upper, Dir Lower, Chitral, Shnagla and Buner have also seen flood of tourists from plain areas of Pakistan after the distance between Malakand division and Islamabad was cut short to only two and half hours following opening of 81-kilometer long Swat expressway before Eid.

The expressway have brought massive surge in tourists at scenic Kalam, Malam Jabba, Maho Dhand, Fizagut, Maidan, Bahrain in Swat, Pir Baba in Buner, Komrat in Dir, Shangla and Chitral where finding a room in hotels, restaurants and rest houses remained highly a challenging task during Eid days.

Kalam remained the main centre of attraction of tourists due to its cool weather where tourists from AJK, Punjab, KP and Gilgit Baltistan were seen droves.

While staying in pods and tented villages, they enjoyed waterfalls, lush green valleys, meadows, snow-covered peaks, water boating, horse and camel ridings.

Located on River Swat some 99 kilometers of Mingora Swat, Kalam's scenic areas Matiltan, Usho, Utror, Gabral and Mohodhand lake saw tourists of all social class where low income groups stayed at makeshift hotels, tents and rooms of houses vacated by local people earning great profits.

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The weather of Kalam is very pleasant and tourists can come here to enjoy its natural waterfalls, lakes and snow covered mountains peaks in a safe atmosphere after Eid mostly on weekends, he maintained.

Malama Jabba, the country's lone skiing resort in Swat district also attracted influx of tourists with families enjoyed chair-lift ride. 'I came to Malam Jabba after visiting Kalam to enjoy Eid holidays to beat the heat" Sajid Khan, a resident of Nowshera told APP.

"I enjoyed a ride at chairlift at Malam Jabba as it was very comfortable, safe and tourists must come here to enjoy natural beauty of the area after Eid," he said.

Comment by Riaz Haq on June 10, 2019 at 5:18pm

12 exotic beaches in #Pakistan. #Balochistan: Gaddani, Gwadar, Jiwani, Ormara, Kund Malir, Sonmiani, and Astola Islands. #Karachi (Sindh): Clifton, French, Hawke’s Bay and Sandspit. #ArabiaSea #beaches #tourism https://www.thenews.com.pk/latest/482211-12-exotic-beaches-of-baloc...

The Press Information Department (PID) of the Government of Pakistan on its Twitter showed some beautiful glimpses of 12 exotic beaches on the long coastline from Gwadar to Karachi.

The tweet states: “Pakistan offers some breathtaking beaches with unparalleled serenity. These are 12 exotic beaches where one can gaze at mesmerising waves of Arabian Sea. #BeautifulPakistan”


Pakistan's southern coastline meets the Arabian Sea, running along the provinces of Sindh and Balochistan. There are various beaches on the coastline but the PID has selected 12 of them.

The names of these beaches in Balochistan are: Gaddani, Gwadar, Jiwani, Ormara, Kund Malir, Sonmiani, and Astola Islands.

The beaches in Karachi (Sindh) are Clifton, French, Hawke’s Bay and Sandspit.

Comment by Riaz Haq on July 22, 2019 at 4:56pm

Pakistan allots over 400 acres of land for #Kartarpur #Gurdwara. 80% work on #Pakistan side completed. #Indian #pilgrims to leave Kartarpur in fixed time but those from #UK, #US, elsewhere on valid visas can stay longer. #sikhs #tourism https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/pakistan-increases-land-allot... via @indiatoday 

The corridor will connect Darbar Sahib in Pakistan's Kartarpur with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district and facilitate visa-free movement of Indian Sikh pilgrims, who will have to just obtain a permit to visit Kartarpur Sahib, which was established in 1522 by Sikh faith founder Guru Nanak Dev.

Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar on Tuesday announced increasing the land allotted for Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur from three acres to 42 acres and further said that any kind of construction will not be done on the land, which remained under cultivation of Guru Nanak, The News reported.

"We want to convey this message to the Sikh brethren living all over the world that there will be no cut inland for Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur and Guru Nanak, rather 42 acres land has been allocated for Gurdwara Darbar Sahib and 62 acres for cultivation," Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar said during his visit to the corridor to review the pace of work on the project.

"In this way, total land for Gurdwara Darbar Sahib will be 104 acres," Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar said.

The governor, who also heads the committee for religious tourism and heritage, said the total land for Kartarpur Corridor will be 408 acres.

Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar said 80 per cent of the work on the Kartarpur Corridor has been completed as per the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan and hope that it would be completed before 550 birth celebrations of Guru Nanak this year.

Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar also hoped that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the inaugural ceremony of Kartarpur Corridor, the report added.

Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar said it was a "good omen" that second round of talks between Pakistan and India on the Kartarpur Corridor remained successful.

Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar further said special transport would be provided from check-point to Darbar Sahib to the Indian Sikh pilgrims visiting this holy place. He said construction of three 'langar Khanas' was underway at Darbar Sahib where Sikh pilgrims would be provided quality meal and other facilities, the report added.

The pilgrims coming from India would have to return back from Kartarpur in the given time and the ones coming from the UK, the US and other countries on valid visas would be granted permission to stay here and houses are being built for them, it added.

Pakistan is building the corridor from the Indian border to the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib while the other part from Dera Baba Nanak up to the border will be constructed by India.

Last November, India and Pakistan agreed to set up the border crossing linking Gurudwara Darbar Sahib, the final resting place of Guru Nanak Dev, to Dera Baba Nanak shrine.

Kartarpur Sahib is located in Pakistan's Narowal district across the river Ravi, about four km from the Dera Baba Nanak shrine.

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had on November 26 last year laid the foundation stone of the Kartarpur Corridor in Gurdaspur district.

Two days later, Pakistan Prime Minister Khan laid the foundation stone of the corridor in Narowal, 125-km from Lahore.

Comment by Riaz Haq on July 31, 2019 at 2:26pm

10 Interesting Facts About #Pakistan
The South Asian country has given the world the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize winner and the world’s highest ATM. 2 Nobel Laureates, First #Muslim woman PM, World's Largest #Irrigation System, World's First PC Virus https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/2019-07-31/10-i...

1. Two Pakistanis have won the Nobel Peace Prize: the late Abdus Salam, a theoretical physicist who in 1979 shared the Nobel Prize in physics for his contribution to electroweak unification theory, and Malala Yousafzai, a woman's education activist who in 2014 shared it with Kailash Satyarthi of India. Yousafzai was 17 when she was awarded the Nobel, making her the youngest-ever laureate.

2. The name Pakistan derives from two words, "Pak," which is Persian for holy, clean or pure, and "istan" derives from the Hindi word "isthan," which means a place.

3. Pakistan has six designated UNESCO World Heritage sites: the archeological ruins at Moenjodaro; the Buddhist ruins of Takht-i-Bahi and neighboring city remains at Sahr-i-Bahlol; the fort and Shalamar Gardens in Lahore; the monuments at Makli; Fort Rohtas; and the ancient ruins of Taxila.

4. Pakistan has the world's largest contiguous irrigation system, according to the United Nations.

5. If you play soccer – called football by most people around the world – it's likely you've put a boot into a product made in Pakistan. Workers in the country hand-sew many of the soccer balls distributed around the world, and as The Atlantic reports, roughly 40% of all soccer balls in the world are made in one Pakistani city: Sialkot.

6. The world's first PC virus was created by two Pakistani brothers. Basit Farooq Alvi and Amjad Farooq Alvi created "Brain," which was discovered in 1986 and targeted IBM PC platforms.

7. Some of the highest mountains in the world are located in Pakistan. The world's second-tallest mountain is in the country and has many names: Dapsang or Chogori locally, Mount Godwin-Austen in English and Qogir Fengin Chinese. But most people know it simply as K2, standing at 8,611 meters, or 28,251 feet.

8. The Karakoram Highway is the world's highest paved international road, according to Travel+Leisure magazine. The 800-mile highway connects Pakistan to western China, and reaches a maximum height of 15,300 feet.

9. Speaking of heights, the ATM at the world's highest elevation belongs to the National Bank of Pakistan and sits in the Khunjerab Pass, in Gilgit-Baltistan. It was established in November 2016 and is 15,397 feet above sea level.

10. The late Benazir Bhutto was the first woman to head a democratic government in a Muslim-majority country.

Comment by Riaz Haq on September 30, 2019 at 5:53pm

#Pakistan #tourist traffic jumps, up 317% over the past 5 years with #Punjab’s contribution being nearly 95%, reports Gallup Pakistan survey. Visits to #cultural heritage sites and museums are up from 1.6 million in 2014 to 6.6 million in 2018. https://www.dawn.com/news/1508132

Tourist traffic at cultural sites in Pakistan has seen a massive increase of 317 per cent over the past five years with Punjab’s contribution being nearly 95pc, according to a report.

The report Cultural Heritage and Museum Visits in Pakistan by Gallup Pakistan, a research organisation affiliated with Gallup International Association, indicates that tourism could be a potential game changer that could revitalise the struggling economy of the country.

According to data presented in the report, available with Dawn, tourism at cultural sites has experienced a massive increase since 2014. From approximately 1.6 million visits in 2014, the tourist traffic at cultural sites rose to 6.6m visits in 2018, a 317 per cent increase in a span of five years. Punjab, as the largest and most populated province, contributed approximately 95pc whereas tourist traffic in Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa fluctuated over the years.

The tourist traffic at museum sites increased by approximately 50pc with the number of visits increasing from 1.7m in 2014 to around 2.7m in 2018. The tourist traffic in KP and Balochistan has also experienced a similar trend at its museum sites, whereas in Punjab and Sindh, the number of visits at museum sites fluctuated over the years. But overall, the provinces recorded maximum number of visits in 2018.

Total visits by foreigners increased by more than two folds for both cultural and museum sites in Pakistan. Over the past five years the percentage of foreign visitors to museums rose by approximately 130pc whereas foreign visitors to cultural sites rose by 100pc. Museums remained more popular among foreign visitors by receiving on average 50pc more visits than cultural sites. The trend among all four provinces for total foreign visits saw a gradual increase, with the highest increase in KP where the number of museum visits in 2018 rose by 250pc.

The Pakistan Monument Museum in Islamabad, Khewra Mines Museum in Chakwal and Lok Virsa Heritage Museum in Islamabad were the top three most popular museums from 2016 to 2018, with Taxila and Lahore museums in fourth and fifth positions.

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The report states that the Shahi Qila in Lahore was the most popular cultural site. The Shalimar Garden, Lahore, was the second most popular site in 2016 and 2018, and the Hiran Minar in Sheikhupura was the second most visited site in 2017. The third most popular site in 2016 was Jehangir’s tomb, Lahore. In 2017 it was the ancient Buddhist monastic complex Takht-i-Bahi in Mardan that was the most visited and in 2018 it was the Hiran Minar.

Among foreigners the Lahore Museum was the most popular in 2016 and 2017. But, in 2018 Taxila Museum was most visited. From 2016 to 2018, Taxila was the most liked cultural site for foreign tourists. The Shahi Qila was the second most well-liked site. The third most visited site by foreigners in 2016 was Moenjodaro, Larkana, Jehangir’s Tomb in 2017 and the Shalimar Garden in 2018.

“There is room for further improvements. With some more efforts both local and foreigner visitors can be increased substantially,” said Mr Ghani of Gallup Pakistan.

Comment by Riaz Haq on October 11, 2019 at 3:46pm

This Popular Solo Travel Vlogger Says #Pakistan Could Be World’s #1 #Tourism Destination. She says it after visiting 44 countries. She has more than 381,000 followers on Instagram, 421,000 followers on Facebook, and 324,000 on her YouTube channel @forbes https://www.forbes.com/sites/breannawilson/2019/10/11/this-popular-...

Pakistan. It’s not exactly on every solo female traveler’s bucket list. But that doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be. Especially if you ask vlogger and content creator Eva zu Beck, who thinks Pakistan could be the world’s #1 tourism destination.

And she doesn’t say this lightly. Having visited 44 countries and with more than 381,000 followers on Instagram, 421,000 followers on Facebook, and 324,000 YouTube channel subscribers as a result of the incredible travel content she creates – from videos exploring forgotten islands in Yemen to exploring Aleppo, Syria alone – she knows a thing or two about the world’s most under-the-radar destinations.

But it wasn’t just her fearlessness that caught my eye, it was her content on Pakistan that really pulled me in. Because she didn’t just visit for a week or two, she lived there for an extended period of time (10 months to be exact), taking her time to really dig into what Pakistani culture, and it’s people, are truly like, creating videos and telling stories on her experiences there that are unlike anything else I’ve seen out there.

She headed straight into “Taliban Territory” to live with a local family. She trekked to the base camp of the world’s second tallest mountain. She traveled to the world’s highest paved international border crossing. She met with female carpenters to hear their stories. She took on Karachi alone. And she’s appeared on Pakistani TV.

And while she developed her content independently of the government and tourism board, they took notice. Even inviting her to meet Prime Minister Imran Khan at a tourism conference, presenting to him her impressions of Pakistan as a travel destination from a foreign visitor's perspective (and where she originally shared her thoughts on Pakistan having the potential to be the #1 tourism destination in the world).

Comment by Riaz Haq on December 14, 2019 at 5:49pm

Condé Nast travel magazine ranks #Pakistan number 1 among world’s top 20 #tourism destinations.”Pakistan has more peaks taller than 22,965ft than China and Nepal combined, making it an almost magnetic spot for adventure travellers and intrepid hikers”

https://www.cntraveller.com/gallery/best-holiday-destinations-2020

1. PAKISTAN
The adventure traveller’s must-visit goes from strength to strength
Thwarted by tales of terrorism and Taliban rule, Pakistan’s tourism industry has been stymied for the past two decades. But ancient valleys, relaxed visa restrictions and a high-profile royal visit in the offing mean this remarkable country is finally getting the focus it deserves.

Because this is a place of exquisite landscapes, where green spaces are overlooked by towering mountains. In fact, Pakistan has more peaks taller than 22,965ft than China and Nepal combined, making it an almost magnetic spot for adventure travellers and intrepid hikers. Visitors can follow in Michael Palin’s steps while traversing the 12,250ft Shandur Pass, home to the world’s highest polo field, or meet with the Kalash people of the Hindu Kush, famed for their cowrie-shell headdresses and brighter-than-bright embroidery. In Lahore, the sight of 100,000 worshippers crammed into the sandstone 17th-century Badshahi Mosque will leave you breathless, while Mughal-era architectural masterpieces stand resplendent on bustling street corners.

‘Having operated tours in Pakistan since the late 1990s, I’ve had a ringside seat to its troubled tourism industry, but finally it seems to be improving,’ says Jonny Bealby, founder and CEO of adventure-tour operator Wild Frontiers. ‘A focus on security measures, which saw the British FCO lift its advice against travel to large parts of the north, and the election of Imran Khan, who has vowed to increase international tourist numbers, has already had an impact,’ he says.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are also due to visit this Autumn to witness the magic of the mountains first-hand, while many of the frustrating permits previously required to travel here have been dropped. Hardy visitors will find that little has changed since Mughal times – with the peaks’ gemstone mines, fairy meadows and winding trails worn into the ground by heavy-laden yaks – while the Karokoram, stretching upwards from the north-west frontier and carved into the ancient bedrock, is one of the world’s most astonishing highways.

Comment by Riaz Haq on December 22, 2019 at 6:52am

Top 20 best holiday destination in 2020 1.

PAK 2.

GBR 3.

KGZ 4.

ARM 5.

BRA 6.

AUS 7.

IRL 8.

PHL 9.

FRA 10.

SICILY 11.

SEN 12.

USA 13.

LBN 14.

CHN 15.

DNK 16.

VGB 17.

MAR 18.

PAN 19.

HRV 20.

JPN (CN Traveller)

Comment by Riaz Haq on January 29, 2020 at 7:38am

#Tourism can Save #Pakistan's #Economy. #CPEC to give impetus to maritime tourism potential of Pakistan and #Gwadar port in particular. #Maritime and #coastal tourism would grow at a global rate of 3.5 percent annually by 2030. #China https://intpolicydigest.org/2020/01/29/tourism-can-save-pakistan-s-... via @intpolicydigest

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The coastline of Pakistan extends to 1050 km along the Arabian Sea, of which Sindh province shares 350 km and Balochistan segments 700 km. The coastal region of Balochistan in particular has a number of sand beaches with “shifting sand dunes.” Biological diversity, adds to the beauty and importance of the coastal belt, where migratory birds can be seen at Pasni, Jiwani and Miani Hor. Astola Island, the country’s first marine protected area (MPA), is a known nesting ground for endangered green turtles which can perhaps be developed into a sustainable tourist attraction. The Balochistan government, in view of the above potential, has announced to build tourist resorts to cater to the needs of local and foreign tourists at an allocated cost of $2.1 million at Kund Malir, Gadani, Ormara, Jīwani, and Khor Kalmat. Karachi, the provincial capital of Sindh, is the coastal city that remains a popular destination among national tourists. The Clifton beach is a famous place to visit where camel and buggy rides are offered for families on picnic. Hawke’s Bay is another of the beach for leisure seekers who usually rent a hut to spend their weekends. The Indus Delta and the mangroves at the Sindh provincial coast also offers a potential tourism resource.
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The region presently contributes $296 billion in tourism, with states such as Maldives, India and Sri Lanka taking the lead in successfully whirling the sector into a major contributor for the national economy. The World Bank estimates that tourism for Pakistan has a mere share of 2.93 percent to the gross domestic product, compared to other regional states that are performing extraordinarily well. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) by tapping in the maritime potential of Pakistan and Gwadar port in particular, is foreseen by analysts to provide the necessary impetus for prosperous sea-based tourism in Pakistan.

The joint venture of $52 billion (CPEC) between China and Pakistan, is a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The latter aims to revive the ancient Silk Road via an ambitious network of rail, road and maritime networks involving more than 150 states across the continent. The grandeur nature of the project allows considerable opportunities for local and international investors to participate in developing the sea-based tourism industry. It is worth mentioning that China increased its revenues by billions of dollars as a result of coastal tourism. The two countries should collaborate on increasing tourism. China, sharing from its successful experience, can provide important insights into developing viable maritime tourism industry in Pakistan.

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