Stranded passengers: Two weeks on, KKH remains blocked for traffic

G-B information minister assures resumption of the highway soon.

GILGIT:

The misery of stranded passengers continued into a second week on Tuesday as traffic between Rawalpindi and Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) remained suspended.

The Karakoram Highway (KKH) was sealed from November 14 – a day before Muharram 10 – to avoid any untoward incident since portions of the thoroughfare remain unprotected. However, in the wake of the violence in Rawalpindi on November 15, which claimed the lives of 12 seminary students, the suspension was prolonged due to protests in areas along the 600km-long highway.

“We are just stuck here. There is no way out,” said Ijaz Ali, a resident of G-B who had expected to reach Islamabad by Tuesday to attend a personal engagement. “I also tried to find a flight but that didn’t work out due to the rush of passengers.”



The situation is equally worrying for the G-B government. “We are aware of the hardships faced by people,” G-B Information Minister Sadia Danish told reporters on Tuesday. “But the steps were taken for the security of passengers.”

Thousands like Ali have been stuck in either G-B or Rawalpindi, awaiting the restoration of traffic due to lack of alternatives. Unfavourable weather conditions have halted regular flights to the regions.

Similarly Babusar Road, which also connects G-B with Khyber-Paktunkhwa (K-P) and the rest of the country, also remains inaccessible from November to March due to snowfall.

The minister assured the resumption of KKH soon, adding that the K-P government has almost completed chalking out security measures for passengers. “We have done the homework on our part. But once K-P is done with its arrangements, traffic will be restored.”

Published in The Express Tribune, November 27^th, 2013.