KHAPLU: A Pakistani tourism company to which dozens of properties in the picturesque Gilgit-Baltistan region have been leased by the government recently, unleashing a wave of protests, said this week locals would not be left behind as it developed tourist areas and infrastructure.
Residents of Skardu Valley came out in protest earlier this week after 37 properties belonging to GB’s Forest and Communication and Works Departments were leased out to the Green Tourism Company, which has been widely described by demonstrators as being “army-backed.” 
Gilgit-Baltistan, an impoverished, remote and rugged mountainous part of the larger Kashmir region also claimed by India, is governed as a separate administrative territory under Pakistan-governed Azad Kashmir. Home to some of the tallest mountains in the world, GB is a major tourist destination, with foreign and local tourism forming the backbone of its economy.
Strategically, GB is important as the only land-based link between Pakistan and its closest regional ally, China. The Pakistan army maintains a large security presence in the area, which borders Afghanistan and China and is the gateway of the $65 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) infrastructure plan. But the region has so far reaped few rewards.
Locals fought pro-India forces and opted to join Pakistan in 1948. But since then Gilgit-Baltistan has not been granted full inclusion by the Pakistani constitution over fears doing so would jeopardize Islamabad’s international stance that all of Kashmir is disputed territory. The region’s local assembly has few powers. Pakistan’s National Assembly and Senate have no representation from Gilgit-Baltistan, and the region receives only a fraction of the national budget.
“We are here to develop the tourism areas and infrastructure by engaging local communities,” Ghazanfar Khan, Green Tourism’s administration director, told Arab News, saying the company’s work in GB would create 300 direct and about 3,000 to 4,000 indirect job opportunities.
“The development of tourism infrastructure is a vital component of the thriving tourism industry. Uplifting accommodation options, improving transportation system, tourist facilities, information and communication technologies, sustainable infrastructure and community engagement are the top priorities of the company.”
Asked if Green Tourism was “army-backed,” Khan said it was government-owned and worked under the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), a civil-military hybrid body established last year to oversee foreign financing, but which is widely believed to be run directly by the army. 
The SIFC has earmarked several economic sectors, including tourism, that are being prioritized for foreign investment.
“The main purpose of SIFC is to attract foreign investors to the country,” Khan said. “And you know, for foreign investors, whenever they go, they need security. That’s why the prime minister is the head of SIFC and the Pakistan army will provide them [SIFC projects] security.”
The military did not respond to requests for comment. 
The company official said global marketing strategies would be used by the company to harness and promote GB’s vast tourism potential:
“All projects will adhere to environmental sustainability principles, ensuring that no trees are cut during development. Furthermore, local cuisines, artefacts and cultural heritage will be actively promoted to enrich the tourism experience and support local communities.”
However, the chairman of the Awami Action Committee that launched the protests this week described the tourist firm’s presence in GB as a “conspiracy” to occupy the area’s resources.
“They should be leased out to locals,” he said about the 37 properties leased to Green Tourism.
“Gilgit-Baltistan is a disputed region and without taking the public into confidence, there is no need to bring investors from outside,” Agha Ali Rizvi, a local elder and religious scholar, said. “All the lands allotted to the company are public property. Ignoring the public and signing a deal with [outside] investors is not a good omen.”
Rizvi said if the government wanted to promote the tourism industry, it should provide electricity, water, education and health facilities to the people of GB. 
The region’s tourism minister Ghulam Muhammad said the administration had decided to lease out the properties to upgrade tourist destinations and attract more visitors, which would ultimately benefit locals. 
“Government rest houses were built in GB when there was no concept of the private sector here,” he said. 
“Now, you see, big hotels have come to the area. The government was facing huge losses and [these properties] were becoming a [financial] burden. So, to get benefit, we leased them out to the Green Tourism Company.”

LAHORE: An Australian couple on a quest to drive from London to Melbourne in a 102-year-old car were forced to put the brakes on their journey because of an unlikely obstacle: Pakistan’s heat wave. 
Langley Kidby, 77, and Beverley Kidby, 71, are veteran motor adventurists who have driven through over 80 countries and covered tens of thousands of miles on a journey that aims to emulate legendary Australian cyclist, adventurer and filmmaker Francis Birtles who became the first man in 1927 to drive from London to Melbourne.
The Kidbys were so committed to emulating Birtles they even bought the 1922 Bean car from a museum that the late Australian cyclist drove.
The husband-wife duo began their journey on April 1 and crossed Europe, driving from Turkiye to Iran from where they entered Pakistan through its southwestern Balochistan province. The plan was to drive all the way to Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore and then travel onwards to India through the Wagah border.
But the scorching temperature in Sukkur in the southern Sindh province threw a spanner in the works.
Temperatures have risen this month above 125.6 degrees Fahrenheit (52 degrees Celsius) in Sindh, the highest reading of the summer and close to the country’s record high amid an ongoing heat wave.
“When we crossed into Pakistan, we had a heatwave here and we had 55 degrees,” Langley told Arab News, explaining that the Bean did not have air conditioning. “And the car got very hot … So, it was a very, very grueling few days, all the way to Sukkur, and then on to Lahore.”
Beyond this point, the heat made it difficult to drive through Sibi city in Balochistan and Sukkur in Sindh and the couple decided to have the car towed from Sukkur to Lahore via a truck from where it will continue the journey onwards to India, Malaysia, Singapore and then finally back to Australia.
‘FANTASTIC PEOPLE’
Mohsin Ikram, the president of the30-year-old Vintage and Classic Car Club of Pakistan (VCCCP) that pays homage to “automobiles of a bygone era,” was the chief coordinator for the Australian couple’s car ride across Pakistan.
Speaking to Arab News, Ikram said his organization was affiliated with the Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens (FIVA), the worldwide federative association of historic automobile clubs.
“So FIVA got in touch with me and said this couple wants to do this journey and Pakistan is on their route,” Ikram told Arab News. “But they are a bit concerned about people advising them not to go.”
Ikram assured the couple they would remain safe on their journey through Pakistan and sure enough, the Kidbys leave Pakistan today, Friday, as happy customers.
“Oh, it’s fantastic, these are some of the friendliest people we’ve ever met,” Beverley said. “That to me is the best part of the trip, meeting the people and finding out how welcoming and lovely they are.”
She said the couple traveled with security and were escorted at different locations by the paramilitary Levies forces, army and police until they arrived in Lahore. 
The couple were also all praise for Pakistani mechanics.
“In several countries, we found mechanics who can fix almost anything at all and because we can’t get spare parts for this car, so they make some spare parts for us,” Langley said. “And we found this in Iran, we found this in Pakistan, very, very smart mechanics.”
Sitting next to her husband as they drove off once again in Lahore, Beverley said she would take a positive message about Pakistan wherever she went in the future. 
“I would like to recommend [to other foreigners] to come here and see for themselves what a wonderful country it is and the people, how friendly they are,” she said.
Ikram urged the government to review its policies on tourism.
“If [the government] can make things easier [and safer] for them,” he said, “we can raise motoring tourism by such a large amount, Pakistan can benefit a lot from this.”