Altaf Hamid Rao,
MIRPUR (AJK) : Under the spirit to promote the fast-emerging potential of tourism in the picturesque mountainous State of Azad Jammu & Kashmir coupled with demonstration of grand hospitality for the tourists pouring from across the country and abroad, a grand ‘Tourism Walk’ was Saturday held at Kohala in Muzaffarabad district, the gateway to that part of the Himalayan state of Jammu & Kashmir.
The first of its own kind ‘Tourism Walk’ was managed by Banking Club of AJK, state-run Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of AJK and the State Department of Tourism, Archaeology and Culture, as a joint venture towards the promotion of tourism industry in the State.
The objective of hosting the grand event was to welcome the tourists pouring in AJK from across the country and abroad besides to sensitized them regarding tourism potential of AJ&K and it’s inter linkage with the Environment.
Besides Director General AJK Tourism Department Irshaad Peerzada, senior officials of EPA AJK including Director Shafeeque Abbasi, Deputy Director Ali Saleem, Regional Manager HBL Muzaffarabad and Chief Manager State Bank of Pakistan, AJK Region Muhammad Saleem Abbasi and others led the walk.
Holding placards and banners bearing welcome slogans for the tourists travelling to AJK, the participants of the walk passed through the centuries-old Kohala-Muzaffarabad for quite some time to mark the traditional hospitality of the people and the state of Jammu & Kashmir for the guests through this great symbolic gesture.
EPA’s team distributed Oxo- biodegradable plastic bags along with ‘Green tourism’ awareness printing brushers among the tourists at Kohala entry point and guide them to keep the tourist places ‘plastic & garbage free’, dump your trashes into bio-degradable plastic bags at suitable location , where can be easily collected by concerned municipalities.
Meanwhile Director General of Environmental Protection Agency of Azad Jammu Kashmir government and chief representative of EPA Raja Mummad Razaq, on this occasion, emphasized that it was an established fact that Tourism and Environment were interlinked and particularly in AJ&K, the huge natural potential of tourism was just because of its pristine environment, plenty of other natural resources and beautiful landscapes.
Talking to this Correspondent on Saturday the AJK EPA chief said that being regulatory authority to ensure pollution-free environment in all spheres of life, his department (AJK EPA) was very much concerned about the prospects of negative impacts of unmanaged tourism activities on environment. EPA, he added, was tangibly pursuing to promote it on sustainable basis. “For this purpose, the relationship of tourism and healthy environment needs to be appreciated at all level and active role of all the stakeholders was very much imperative in this respect”, he emphasized.
To a question, the DG EPA Raja Razaq said that on the special directives of the AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan and the State’s Chief Secretary Mathar Niaz Rana, Environment Protection Agency AJK was determined to facilitate and coordinate with concerned stake holders for the promotion of tourism in neat and clean environment besides for revival of ancient sites depecting the centuries old cultural heritage of the state of Jammu & Kashmir located in Azad Jammu Kashmir – most particularly the ancient forts of Ramkot and Mangla in Mirpur district, Muzaffarabad Fort Baghsar fort in Bhimbher district besides the scenic lakes in top mountainous Neelam and Leepa vallies besides other identical resorts to attract both local and foreign tourists, he concluded
