Prime Minister Imran Khan stood before a packed stadium in Skardu on Thursday and reiterated his love for the picturesque valley. There is no place in the world as beautiful as Gilgit-Baltistan, he roared. But enjoying a window into paradise can only satiate souls, not famished bellies. To the region’s great misfortune, it is yet to gain a status above that of a geo-strategic rattle. While the present government is seemingly the first to take up the cudgels for its greater autonomy, the final seal of approval is still in the pipeline. As far as Islamabad’s promising campaign to turbocharge the tourism industry so that locals can finally step above their languishing plight is concerned, words are just words unless they are kept. Overcoming the widespread notoriety our country enjoys as a terror sanctuary is not a walk in the park, even without the strenuous task of piquing the interests of tourists and then enticing them back for more. To make them switch over from the aggarandized, bejeweled Swiss impressions (thank you, Bollywood) to our raw beauty needs a shot to the tune of multi-millions directly in the arm. The dillatente hoteliers determined to earn easy money while wreaking irreversible havoc on the natural scenery cannot lead the way. Sadly, the government has not learned from its Kartarpur adventure that while it may be ready to roll out the red carpet for international flights, the world still sits uneasily. Yes, the grand project has earned us a golden star from the Sikh community (giving pristine fodder to anti-Modi churning mills) but the returns are not that remarkable. PM Khan had embarked on the revolutionary election campaign with an ultra-ambitious goal: no brain drain. The official mouthpieces did not tire of blabbering about extensive plans to pull the diaspora back to take charge of the state enterprises. Three years down the road, Pakistanis are looking at outside skies like rats fleeing a sinking ship. They might not be that off the mark in the light of the recent storm whipped up by former FBR chairman. Now, those overseas Pakistanis and their remittances are heralded as a supreme asset by the same leaders. Ironic much? It is high time we stop hiding behind the pandemic mantra because the rest of the world has clearly moved on. Record-breaking inflation can neither be made light of nor explained using vague terms and nonsensical comparisons. The people do not care how much bread costs in the UK. Similarly, a household cannot run on just tea leaves. Therefore, we need comprehensive reforms to phenomenally bring down the prices of all staple items, not ration programs. Whether it be through slicing the hands that are in no mood to leave corruption or upping the governance game, PM and his kitchen cabinet better dole out a new plan. *