Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The National Highway Authority (NHA) has completed over 90 percent of construction work on 32-KM long Bahrain-Kalam road that was devastated by floods in 2010.

The construction work on Bahrain-Kalam road, initiated in May, 2017, would be completed in coming days as it entered into final stages, an official source in the NHA told APP.

“Only 1.5 kilometer patch of this road is yet to be rehabilitated on which construction work is being carried out expeditiously,” he added.

An official source in Tourism Corporation Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (TCKP) said Kalam was one of the top tourists’ destinations and would regain its lost glory due to construction of that road.

He said the 32 km bumpy hilly road that had been testing travelers’ nerves for the last nine years would eventually reduce half the traveling time for tourists, besides giving boost to the number of visitors visiting Kalam valley.

To a query, he said the project could not be completed in stipulated time period due to unavailability of funds.

Meanwhile, the tourists visiting the area praising the beauty of the whole strip along River Swat right from Mangora to Kalam township expressed their gratitude over completion of a long awaited project, the main access to a number of scenic tourists destinations in the hilly area.

“Kalam is an ignored beauty beyond rough trails and needs immediate attention to encourage travelers to visit this natural treasure,” said a tourist Shahzad Iqbal.

He urged the departments concerned to focus on landscaping of the route leading to Kalam as it would increase the area’s beauty and attract foreign tourists as well.