Rs3.7bln Allocated For Development Of New Tourists Sites In KP

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has allocated Rs150 million for accessibility and connectivity of scenic tourists resort Sheikh Badin in D I Khan district on modern lines

PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th Jun, 2019 ):Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has allocated Rs150 million for accessibility and connectivity of scenic tourists resort Sheikh Badin in D I Khan district on modern lines.

"Accessibility to Sheikh Badin tourists resort is a major hurdle for tourists and to address this issue, the KP government has taken a principle decision to explore it by allocating Rs150 million for different links roads and connectivity projects," a senior official of KP Tourism Corporation told APP on Wednesday.

With assistance of Word Bank and under an aegis of KITE programme, the government has chalked out a mega project worth Rs3.7 billion for promotion of tourism and development of new tourists places in KP.

As many as one billion were earmarked for development of new tourists sites and places at Malakand and Hazara divisions in Budget 2019-20.

As many as Rs 300mln were earmarked for different tourism activities and projects in the province besides allocation of Rs 500mln for provision of facilities to promote 100 different sports.

The government will provide Rs350 million for up-gradation and establishment of seven sports complexes in different districts of the province to provide state of the art facilities to young players under one roof.

As many as Rs 70mln were set aside for development of Hockey and Squash in the province besides raising of tourism police to facilitate tourists at scenic areas including Malakand and Hazara divisions.

He said the idea of tourism police has remained highly successful during Eid-ul-Fitr holidays in Malakand and Hazara divisions.

To promote tourism in line with vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan, he said KP government was also working on a plan to start helicopter service for tourists to enable them to see the picturesque valleys, snow covered mountains peaks, lush green meadows and rivers that were not easily accessible through land routes.

"The government are in talks with a private company aimed at to provide helicopter service for promotion of tourism so that tourists can enjoy beautiful tourists destinations through aerial view and access these places easily." The helicopter service would make easier for tourists from Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi and Islamabad besides foreign tourists to access top tourist resorts in hilly areas of Chitral, Swat, Kohistan, Dir, Manshera and other districts with more ease.

The chopper service will reduce the 16-hour distance from Punjab to Chitral to just two hours besides promoting mountainous and adventure tourism in KP with a lot of scope.

He said KP Tourism Authority has been setup to discover more tourist places in the province on modern lines to attract maximum number of tourists.