People demand widening of Chitral Airport Road.

CHITRAL -- The residents have demanded widening of the Chitral Airport Road to accommodate the increasing volume of vehicular traffic.

The communication and works department has earmarked Rs36 million for the road's blacktopping only.

Former district nazim Maghfirat Shah said widening of the road was inevitable as it was one of the oldest and busiest roads in the Chitral district connecting Singur, Balach, Dolomus and Seen Lusht valleys with the city.

He said the road was in ruins as the government did not release a penny for its repair and maintenance despite his repeated requests when he was district nazim.

He regretted that after a long wait, the government had released funds only for its blacktopping, which he said won't resolve the issue of traffic congestion unless it was widened. He said the establishment of University of Chitral and Aga Khan Higher Secondary School in Seen Lusht, district police office and technical college in Balach had further increased the traffic volume on the road.

Mr Shah said a number of fatal accidents had occurred on the road due to its narrowness. He said in majority of cases the...