NHA reopens Mansehra, Naran, Jalkhad road to traffic

MANSEHRA: The National Highway Authority has cleared Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road to traffic and restored the road link between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan after suspension for seven months.

The traffic between KP and GB was suspended in November last after heavy snowfall in Kaghan valley. As the road was reopened, the tourists and passengers from Kaghan valley entered Chelas and from Chelas to Kaghan.

“Our family is on a recreational trip to Kaghan valley and wants to move to Hunza and other scenic parts in GB. The reopening of the MNJ road made our dream come true,” Fatima Tabassum, a tourist from Karachi, told reporters in Naran.

She said that some parts of lower Kaghan valley were still capped with snow which attracted picnickers here and now we are moving in upper parts of valley which are mostly under the snow. District Police Officer Zaibullah Khan told reporters that traffic between KP and GB had been restored and now police personnel would be deployed in police posts in upper parts of Kaghan valley. “The safety of tourists and passengers travelling between KP and GB and in Kaghan valley is our prime objective and that is why we are vigilant to ensure tension-free journey for them,” the official said. Ahsan Fiaz, a local told reporters that the MNJ road was cleared up to Babusar Top through modern machines, which were brought in for the first time in the valley for clearing snow and cutting glaciers.