PESHAWAR: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday expressed sorrow over Murree tragedy and ordered inquiry and putting in place effective regulations to ensure prevention of such tragedies.
The prime minister said that the district administration was not ready cope with such the large number of tourists amid heavy snowfall.
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The prime minister twitted after the opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif slammed the government for “criminal silence” on Murree tragedy. The Prime Minister said, “Shocked and upset at tragic deaths of tourists on road to Murree. Unprecedented snowfall and rush of people proceeding without checking weather conditions caught district admin unprepared. Have ordered inquiry and putting in place strong regulations to ensure prevention of such tragedies.”
The prime minister said that an inquiry into the incident had been ordered and strict regulations would be put in place to prevent such tragedies. Earlier, rescue officials in Murree said the death toll from vehicles trapped in the snow had risen to 20 which also included eight children.
The Punjab government has declared Murree a disaster-hit area while Chief Minister Usman Bazdar has convened an emergency meeting to review the rescue operation. Punjab government spokesman Hassan Khawar told a press conference in Lahore that rescue teams had been dispatched from Attock and Rawalpindi to Murree. Buzdar said that the tragedy will be investigated and action will be taken if any negligence was found.
On the other hand, the Pakistan Army Public Relations Department (ISPR) said in a statement that Army engineers were busy opening roads in Murree and Galyat. According to ISPR, four relief camps have been set up for tourists at different places in Murree while Murree Expressway has been cleared. Earlier, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed had said that 16 to 19 people had died in vehicles stuck due to snowfall in Murree.