GILGIT: A government agency announced that Pakistan will enforce a five-year ban on constructing new hotels around the scenic northern lakes that draw tens of thousands of tourists annually.
Unregulated hotel and guest house construction in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) — home to nearly 13,000 glaciers, the most outside the Polar Regions — has raised serious concerns about environmental degradation.
The region’s natural beauty has made it a top tourist destination, with towering peaks overlooking the Old Silk Road and a highway carrying tourists through cherry orchards, glaciers, and ice-blue lakes.
However, in recent years, companies from outside the region have driven a surge in construction, putting pressure on water and power resources and causing a rise in waste.
"If we let them construct hotels at such a pace, there will be a forest of concrete," said Khadim Hussain, a senior official at the Gilgit Baltistan Environmental Protection Authority on Friday.
"People don't visit here to see concrete; people come here to enjoy natural beauty," he added.
Last month, a foreign tourist posted a video on Instagram — which quickly went viral — accusing a hotel of discharging wastewater into Lake Attabad, a freshwater source for Hunza.
The following day, authorities imposed a fine of over $5,000 on the hotel.
Political activist and Hunza Valley resident Asif Sakhi welcomed the ban. "We have noticed rapid changes in the name of tourism and development," he said, adding hotel construction was "destroying our natural lakes and rivers".
Hotel manager and resident Shah Nawaz also praised the ban, saying he believes everyone is responsible for protecting the environment and natural beauty.
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