Pakistani officials and authorities expect reforms to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's tourism sector to revitalise the industry and bring in revenues lost to the militancy.
PESHAWAR: Pakistan Railways (PR) and the Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) are working to bring tourism back to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).Passengers at the century-old Victoria Railway station in Attock, Pakistan, disembark October 3 from an excursion train designed to promote tourism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Passengers on a Pakistani railway excursion between Peshawar and Attock city enjoy the scenery. The two groups October 3 operated an "Excursion Trip to Attock Khurd Railway Heritage" train voyage in an effort to portray KP's softer, tourist-friendly side.
"Our motive is to keep citizens' morale high and present a positive image of our province by promoting tourism," TCKP Managing Director Tariq Jamil said.
The focus is not to earn money, Zahoor Durrani, a consultant at TCKP, said.
"We are operating on a not-for-profit basis in order to revitalise KP's tourist industry," he said, though he added that if the project gains momentum, it could become a profit-maker in the future.
Journey to KP
The train trip starts in the lush green fields of Peshawar and takes riders through the old Victorian Railway station built in 1880 at the foothills of the rugged mountains of Attock Khurd.
The journey takes passengers over an iron girder bridge built over the Indus River in 1883.
The train schedule is not finalised yet, but it will operate on the basis of response by tourists, company officials said. Besides the introductory trip, two more trips are planned for this month, as the trip tries to get a foothold.
"This train trip is exhilarating and … will prove a substitute for the fascinating Khyber Steam Safari ... which was closed reluctantly in 2007 because of the poor law-and-order situation," Durrani said.
Durrani isn't new to the business of pleasure train excursions. He pioneered the Khyber Steam Safari in the early 1990s as a private tour operator and ran the train for 17 years.
"The Khyber Steam Safari train, which travelled between Peshawar and Landi Kotal, attracted a large number of foreign tourists and dignitaries from across the world," he added.
KP's lost fortune
He, like many others, was deeply affected when terrorism and militancy struck the area in 2007.
The once-profitable and ever-growing tourist industry quickly disappeared, causing KP to lose US $400m (Rs. 42.4 billion) during the last decade or so, Durrani said.
The rise in militancy and violence scared tourists away. Organisers hope to run this venture with good security to restore confidence, which in turn should boost travel and other tourist activities, former TCKP consultant Dr. Ali Jan said.
Tourism Department programmes
KP's Tourism Department has launched several projects to further rekindle the sector's success and to help youth.
The TCKP is working on Supat Valley in Kohistan, Kumrat at Upper Dir and Gabbin Jabba at Swat to attract tourists, TCKP Event Manager Muhammad Ali Syed said.
The department also received allocated Rs. 70m (US $660,000) to establish youth centres in 25 districts, with seven to be built at various divisions' headquarters, including Peshawar, Mardan, Swat, Dera Ismail Khan, Kohat and Abbotabad.
"Terrorism can be defeated only through persistent resistance based on high hopes of success," Durrani said.
Ali agreed and said the province is trying to build upon that by coming up with a "Tourism, not Terrorism"
