Gilgit Baltistan’s Minister of Planning and Development Raja Nasir Ali Khan Monday said that the snow-covered GB region to host a seven-day long ‘Winter sports festival’ from January 15to 25 to draw millions of local and foreign tourists where more thanfifty-two teams including 12 female athletes will participate in thee vent.
Talking to the PTV news channel, the minister of GB said that the event aims to showcase the region’s beauty and highlight the soft image of Pakistan around the world, adding, that Gilgit-Baltistan has also inaugurated ‘the Ice Hockey Championship’ in the winter sports festival this year.
He said the potential of Gilgit-Baltistan will host major international events, including the Asian Games and the 2026 Olympics, showcasing Pakistan positively on the global stage.
He said these winter sports have historically remained popular across GB, like ice skating, Skiing etc. Replying to a question, he said hundreds of athletes from different ten districts would take part in the seven-day event, adding, they would be competing in skating, ice hockey, and ice curling.
The government pay attention to winter sports in GB, which will boost Pakistan’s image internationally, while also benefiting the local community in numerous ways, he added.
To another question, he said to promote local culture and entrepreneurs,“the festival also includes several stalls of traditional dresses, food and handicrafts which is an added attraction for the tourists and ana dvantage for the locals.—NNI
