GILGIT: The Gilgit-Baltistan government has suggested to the chief ministers of the four provinces and the prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) to initiate an awareness drive for tourists visiting GB as traffic accidents involving the visitors have increased in the region.

GB Chief Minister Haji Gulbar Khan has written a letter to the chief ministers of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh and Balochistan and the prime minister of AJK.

The letter highlighted the increasing traffic accidents in GB and suggested to initiate an awareness campaign for the tourists about driving in GB.

“I am writing to bring to your attention a matter of urgent concern for the government of Gilgit-Baltistan. Over the past few years, we have observed a significant increase in the number of road traffic accidents in our region, which has resulted in the tragic loss of countless precious lives, particularly those of tourists.”

The data indicated that the number of such incidents had risen from 150 in 2020 to 230 in 2023, a trend that is deeply alarming and demands immediate action.

A detailed analysis of these accidents revealed that a substantial majority of them was attributable to human error, particularly a lack of adequate driving skills suited to the challenging hilly terrain.Many of these accidents involved vehicles with automatic transmissions, which require specific handling techniques that are not widely understood by the general public.

In response to this pressing issue, the GB government, despite its meagre resources, has taken several proactive measures.

“We have established a tourism police force tasked with raising awareness among tourists at entry points. Additionally, National Highway Authority, under the instructions of the Prime Minister, is in the process of extending the services ofthe motorway police to our region to further ensure road safety.

However, these efforts alone are not sufficient to address the scale of the problem. It is imperative that we launch a comprehensive awareness campaign to educate drivers about the unique challenges driving in hilly areas and the proper techniques for handling vehicles, especially those with automatic transmissions.

“We request your esteemed offices to issue instructions for the initiation of thispublic awareness campaign through your information department at the earliest possible date. The collaboration between our respective offices is crucial to ensure the safety of our citizens and visitors, and to mitigate the rising number of road traffic accidents in Gilgit-Baltistan,” said the letter.

Published in Dawn, July 14th, 2024