Frontier Works Organisation (FWO), a military civil engineering organisation, has signed two agreements with Pakistan State Oil (PSO) for establishing four petrol pumps in the Northern Areas (NAs) of the country, ostensibly to promote tourism and help motorists as well as the local communities.
As per details, two agreements have been signed between PSO and FWO, under which four fueling facilities will be established on four different locations of NAs including Shangus and Tangush on Jaglot-Skardu Road as well as in the heart of Kaghan valley at Batakundi (Naran Jalkhad Road) and Passu Cones (Karakoram Highway). The agreements between PSO and FWO were signed on June 24th and June 27th, 2022 while it is expected that the Jaglot Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) facility will start operation within a one-year period.
According to PSO, it has joined hands with FWO to establish state-of-the-art fueling facilities with mini rest areas having tuck shops, executive washrooms, service station and mosque to promote tourism in northern areas and help motorists as well as local communities.
Many parts of the northern areas do not have proper hotels or rest areas for tourists and this initiative will facilitate commuters by providing them with fueling facilities along with proper rest rooms, executive washrooms, service areas and mosques, said PSO.
It added that this is a new road developed by FWO connecting KKR/Jaglot to Skardu. And this road has decreased travel time to Gilgit / Skardu to less than three hours which was around 6-7 hours. Further the road leads to tourists’ locations of the areas including Deosai plains, Shigar Fort, Satpara lake, Khaplu and even K2 base camp.
“The locations have been strategically selected due to the substantial tourist influx in these areas thereby encouraging tourism, helping local communities and facilitating commuters,” said PSO.
Earlier, FWO and Dewan Motors had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to install Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations on the motorways. The first charging station was to be set up on M-2 at Bhera main service area to facilitate the easy movement of EV owners between Lahore and Islamabad.
Commissioned and established in 1966, the FWO includes active duty officers and civilian scientists and engineers. Since its establishment in 1966, it has been credited with the construction of bridges, roads, tunnels, airfields and dams.
