MANSEHRA: The scenic hill station of Naran is expected to reopen for tourists soon as snow and glacier clearance work on the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road enters its final stages.
“Machinery is busy cutting through the Gorian Glacier, and traffic between Naran and the rest of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is expected to resume within a couple of days if the weather clears after remaining suspended for nearly six months,” Hussain Deen, chairman of the Kaghan Hoteliers Association, told reporters on Sunday.
The National Highway Authority (NHA) launched an operation last week to clear glaciers and snow from the MNJ Road to restore connectivity between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan.
Traffic on the route had been suspended in November last year following the first snowfall of the winter season in Kaghan valley.Officials said that while machinery was actively cutting glaciers and removing snow, full restoration of traffic between the two federating units could take another four to five weeks.
Hoteliers have started returning to Naran to resume their businesses and prepare for the influx of tourists from across the country. However, roads leading to Lake Saif-ul-Muluk and other tourist destinations remain blocked due to heavy snow and landslides.
“This winter, the valley up to Naran and even beyond towards Babusar Top did not receive as heavy snowfall as in previous years, which is why the MNJ Road has been cleared up to Naran in a shorter time,” a resident said.
Meanwhile, the police department has yet to reactivate its posts in Basal, Plundrain, Soach, Lake Road, Battakundi, and Jalkhad areas to ensure the safety of passengers and tourists travelling within Kaghan Valley and between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan.
According to officials, the police station currently operating in the lower Kaghan Valley will soon be shifted to Naran, and other posts will be gradually restored as the MNJ Road was cleared.
