Lowari tunnel ‘schedule’; A big Joke with Chitralis

Chitral: According to news reports a high level meeting held under chairmanship Commissioner Malakand division made the following announcements

  1. The work inside the Lowari tunnel is 100 percent complete
  2. The tunnel will be closed for public travel between 8 am to 9 am, 1 pm to 2 pm, 5 pm to 6 pm, 10 pm to 4 am i.e the tunnel will be closed for public travel for 9 hours in 24 hours.
  3. ?It was also decided that during closure hours, government vehicles, millitary vehicles, police vehicles, NHA vehicles, levies vehicles, ambulances and seriously sick carrying vehicles will be allowed to pass through.
    It was also decided that during Shandur Festival i.e from 5 July to 12 July the tunnel shall be open for all 24 hours i.e throughout the day.

Apart from the question as to why if the tunnel is 100 percent complete from inside are travelers not allowed to use it 100 percent i.e 24 hours as is the case with all tunnels everywhere in the world?, the above decisions made at the high level meeting are in direct contravention of the constitution of Pakistan which? clearly states that all citizens are equal in the eyes of law and shall enjoy equal collective facilities and privileges.

According to the above notification those categorized who can use the tunnel 24 hours are different to those common people who are condemned to wait for tunnel opening hours. This is not the Pakistan we asked for. The slogan of PTI saying “dow nahin aik Pakistan” (“Same rules for all”) is on test here. Let us see whether they actively protest about it or whether it is a hollow slogan from them. .. CN report, 05 Jul 2018.

5 thoughts on “Lowari tunnel ‘schedule’; A big Joke with Chitralis

  1. As per the above report, I understand that a common Chitrali traveler has to be either a dead person or seriously sick in an ambulance to be able to avail the privilege of traveling through the tunnel round the clock. This is incomprehensible. If privileged vehicles can cross the tunnel round the clock it means the tunnel is usable round the clock, so why not all vehicles? Either the NHA should give clear cut reasons for this discrimination, or it will be assumed that Pakistan is being ruled by ‘jis ki lathi uski bhains’ or ‘you show me the person and I will tell you the law’, principle.

  2. The biggest sign of an uncivilized society is where the powerful are given undue privileges and the weak are oppressed to prove nature’s zero sum game. Such societies sink under their own unwieldy weight until some bloody revolution comes about and takes control.

  3. Dear editor sir, and honorable contributors…this is not the first time,just remind the waiting crowd out side PIA office in Peshawar and Chitral and Safarishi phones and parchies for early access to tickets..the double standard,the elite and the poor and among the poor the ultra poor and ultra ultra poor and no end of poverty…who is going to care for this class…the same standard is applicable at lawari tunnel operation/procedures..No body was going to care when people having(lungs and heart disease) were gasping inside the tunnel and nobody was bothering to set a small first aid camp around the tunnel with a small bottle oxygen costing nothing…no one care for the poor except Almighty Allah…so let put these things on nature and see the reward…

  4. This treatment is meted out to chitralis because of the their submissive temperament otherwise there is no legal justification for undue closure of the tunnel for 9 hours. If they link it with some security reason, the security issue is more serious in Kohat tunnel which remains opened for 24 hours. This is high time that Chitralis should stand up and protest till the illegal order for keeping the tunnel closed for 9 hours is with drawn.

  5. Can the NHA tell us when will the tunnel open 24 hrs for public, or is it going to remain like this throughout? If so, this will be a unique tunnel in the world and a shining symbol of the spinelessness of Chitralis. Also one way traffic is being allowed through it. For one way traffic the original narrow tunnel was enough. Why wasted billions of rupees on widening it if two way traffic is not allowed in it. Can the NHA answer please, or does it not care.

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