The city of about one million of UK-based Kashmiri expatriates - Mirpur - city of Azad Jammu Kashmir, was being linked by-road directly with the Birmingham city of United Kingdom through the launching of a bus service by March next year 2012. This was announced here late Sunday by AJK Transport Minister Tahir Khokhar while addressing a news conference at the local press club.
He was accompanied by Secretary Regional Transport Authority AJK Adil Mahmood Khan, MVE Sayed Abdul Hameed Gardezi and other senior officials of the State Transport Department. Tahir Khokhar said the proposed Mirpur-Birmingham bus service would be plied from Mirpur to UK via Quetta and Tehran (Iran) to provide inexpensive, safe and comfortable travelling facilities to over 0.70 million Britian-based Kashmiri expatriates hailing from this district.
He said that at the first leg of the proposed plan to be executed by March next year, four latest buses of the international standard will be plied on Mirpur-Birmingham route. The Transport minister said the national and multi-national transport companies were invited to join the proposed Mirpur-Birmingham bus service besides for launching their latest coaches on all the inter-district routes in AJK.
Tahir Khokhar said new transport policy was being announced at the advent of New Year under the spirit to ensure safe and comfortable travelling facilities to the commuters. He said new transport policy would be announced during the next session of the AJK Legislative Assembly. He also said that transport sector was proposed to be declared an industry in AJK under the spirit to ensure its functioning purely for the benefit of the people travelling through the public transport.