The government is planning to establish new tourist resorts in the hilly areas of Pakistan in a bid to promote tourism.
Prime Minister Imran Khan recently chaired a meeting to discuss setting up New Balakot City as a tourism center and said that “reputed private investors in the field of tourism and hospitality are being attracted on Public-Private Partnership mode,” for this purpose.
He directed concerned federal and provincial authorities to work on facilitating private investors and instructed the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to take charge of the project from the Earthquake Reconstruction & Rehabilitation Authority and ensure that the city is developed as a tourist resort.
Prior to this, he was told in a briefing that the feasibility study is worth Rs. 19.5 billion for the development of New Balakot City as a tourist hub in the Design-Build-Finance-Operate and Transfer mode and has been done by NESPAK and KPMG.
63 percent of the 6,753 residential plots under the proposed project will be reserved for local affectees, and the remaining 2,480 residential plots, 575 commercial plots, and 800 apartments will be auctioned off to generate funds for the implementation of the project.
The New Balakot City will be developed under Public-Private Partnership and will include a youth hostel, a camping ground, a 3-star hotel, and a theme park.
