Senior Punjab Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said on Sunday that, under the vision of Chief Minister
Maryam Nawaz Sharif, Punjab’s rich cultural heritage and tourist destinations were being developed and promoted to boost tourism, create employment opportunities and strengthen local communities.
In her message on World Tourism Day, she said the chief minister’s vision was that tourism was not merely about recreation but also a source of economic growth, employment and peace. “From Lahore to Cholistan and Fort Munro, Punjab was a paradise for tourists,” she said, adding that facilities were being expanded at tourist destinations on the directions of the chief minister.
Marriyum Aurangzeb said a new era had begun in Punjab’s tourism and archaeology sectors under the “Magnificent Punjab” vision. The province’s first Archaeology and Tourism Expo had also been organized under the leadership of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, she added. She said mapping of 170 priority heritage sites had been completed for the first time, while scientific preservation and development work was underway at Taxila, Rohtas Fort, Harappa, Hiran Minar, Derawar and other forts of Cholistan.
The senior minister said restoration of the Rawalpindi Walled City, Lahore Railway Station, Harappa Museum and other historic buildings was also part of the government’s heritage conservation initiatives. She said
Taxila was being preserved as an integrated heritage region in line with the chief minister’s directions.
An integrated archaeological park, Heritage Gateway, Living History Village and Decipherment Centre would also be developed at Harappa.
She said restoration of seven major forts of Cholistan, Derawar, Dingarh, Mojgarh, Marot, Phulara, Mirgarh and Jamgarh, was also being undertaken. She said the draft of Punjab Tourism Policy had been completed and work was under way to implement the “Magnificent Punjab” vision. She said the Punjab Tourism and Heritage Authority had been made functional and its board constituted as part of institutional reforms.
She said tourism projects were also being developed under the public-private partnership model, while facilities including floating jetties and water sports had been provided at Kallar Kahar and Dharabi.
