The tourism industry in Gilgit-Baltistan is facing a downturn due to Pakistan’s discriminatory policies.

During winters, when a large number of tourists visit snow-clad mountains, Gilgit-Baltistan is witnessing no tourist inflow due to a lack of infrastructure.

Durdana Sher, a local resident said, “This is the peak time of the year for tourists to visit this place. Unfortunately, this area suffers from a lack of infrastructure, including poorly maintained roads and a hotel that was run by PTDC (Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation) but was closed down two years ago”.

He added, “The PTDC hotel employees are currently jobless. I would ask the tourism department to reopen the hotels as tourists are facing lodging issues which are having an adverse impact on tourism“.