Abdul Khaliq Qureshi
Abbottabad
Residents of Birote Khurd area in Abbottabad district has been left to rely on a shabby chairlift in order to cross the Haro, while the authorities remain indifferent. As per details, the chairlift was used by the locals for transportation but its iron cables and other parts are outdated, risking the lives of thousands of people who use the chairlift to cross the hero twice a day.
Villagers do not have a proper road, and therefore have to rely on the chairlift, which had been installed by private individual in 2005. The chairlift hangs from loose and lightweight ropes. Hanif Abbasi, an elder, said the cable car owners had been getting Rs 20 per head from the passengers, it was becoming popular as the tourists would use it for adventure.
“This chairlift is not risking our lives, it is actually a blessing for us. Before the chairlift was installed, we had to travel over 7-KM to reach the bazaar,” village resident Yaseen Abbasi said. He suggested that the concerned authorities keep a check on these cable cars and conduct technical inspections regularly instead of shutting them down, which causes problems for villagers who have no other mode of transport in difficult terrain and other areas lacking means of communication.
Ghazanfar Ali, another local, said the cables form which the cabin hangs need to be properly inspected and certified by the concerned government department. While commenting on the matter, Muhammad Sohail, Secretary Regional Transport Authority (RTA) Hazara said that these chairlifts (Dolis) are being used in different areas of Hazara Division for crossing over of streams on commercial basis by private individuals.
These lifts were providing a good services to the people but these are not covered under the Motor vehicle ordinance and rules 1969, so these cannot be regulated by RTA. He informed that on several recipet of complaints they had written to Directorate Transport & Mass Transit Department Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
