Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that tourism cannot be developed without the establishment of peace and security stressing that tourists visit places only where they feel themselves secure, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Prime Minister Khan was talking to media persons in Naran on Monday. He stated that tourists always visited places where they felt safe and secure. He stressed the need of making tourist places in the country peaceful and secure.

PM Khan was of the view that Switzerland earns $80 billion through tourism and Pakistan did have the capacity to promote religious and historic tourism. There is a need to promote winter tourism in Pakistan, PM Khan added.

He opined that 15 new tourist spots could be built on the pattern of Nathia Gali. He said to attract tourists, several sports could be introduced.

PM Khan said with an eco-friendly infrastructure in place, Pakistan’s northern areas with their captivating natural beauty could become the world’s top tourist destination.

The prime minister this afternoon arrived in Naran, a tourist destination of the Kaghan valley in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, on a day-long trip to launch several tourism and environmental protection projects.

The projects included launch of emergency response service for tourists, tree plantation along the bank of Kunhar River besides breeding of Trout fish, distribution of 550,000 biodegradable bags, setting up a waste collection system and delivery of motorbikes to Community River Rangers.

The premier said promotion of sustainable tourism through laws to check littering and damage to trees in the areas with increased influx of visitors could secure the fragile ecosystem.

He said the government’s Clean and Green Pakistan initiative was about caring for the nature and encouraging people to avoid littering the public places and protecting trees.

The prime minister expressed confidence that corrective measures in tourism sector would bring a revolution towards generating revenue.

He advised the residents and parliamentarians belonging to the Kaghan Valley to get engaged in maintaining cleanliness of their area to attract more tourists, which he said would be beneficial for the local economy.

He directed strict compliance of bylaws to ensure cleanliness at tourist places and ensure stern action against the violators.

Reporter Awais Kiyani