A high level meeting with the NWFP Governor, Owais Ahmad Ghani in chair on Friday has decided to revive the service of Khyber Steam Safari train to promote tourism in Khyber Agency of Federally Administered Tribal Area (Fata).
The NWFP Chief Secretary Sahibzada Riaz Noor, Chief Executive, Fata Development Authority, Muhammad Shahzad Arbab, Director Operation, Pakistan Railway, Shafiullah Khan and Divisional Superintendent, Pakistan Railways Peshawar and concerned officials attended the meeting.
The meeting, while considering the historic importance of the event, declared it a landmark target towards tourism development in Fata. It also discussed various aspects of the Khyber Steam Safari project and decided its revival. However, before going to restart interesting rail trip through the historic Khyber Pass, a good number of decisions were taken to revitalise the railway track and make other necessary arrangements in this regard.
The officials of Pakistan Railways told the meeting that the revitalising of the railway track including construction of bridges on the historic Khyber Pass would cost Rs 300 million while Pakistan Railways will have a share of Rs 100 million whereas Rs 200 million would be sought from donors.
It was worth mentioning that the Khyber Steam Safari was providing regular service to domestic and foreign tourists before 9/11. However, after the start of the war on terror by the United States and its allies in Afghanistan and tribal belt of Pakistan, the service was suspended due to security concerns. The NWFP Governor showed keen interest in revival of the train service described it highly significant for promotion of tourism in Fata.
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