Tourists stuck as land sliding blocks Punjab-Balochistan highway

Dera Ghazi Khan:Thousands of tourists and travellers were left stranded after a landslide in Dera Ghazi Khan blocked the inter-provincial highway connecting Punjab with Balochistan on Sunday.

The landslide occurred on Quetta Road at Neeli Matti in Dera Ghazi Khan’s tribal area of Rakhi Gaaj on the night between Saturday and Sunday. The blockade of the highway caused a 40km-long traffic snarl-up.

A large number of travellers and tourists going to Fort Munro to witness snowfall have been caught up in the situation without any food and water in freezing cold, triggering fears of suspension of supply of fruits and vegetables from Balochistan to Punjab from Monday.

Personnel of border military police have been called in to clear the road for traffic. The blockade had made miles-long lines of heavy and light traffic on both side of the highway. Hotels in Fort Munro have also been facing threat of closure due to suspension of supplies, and the local people have been providing food items to the tourists and travellers stranded in the area.