MANSEHRA: Traders and other residents of Mahandri on Tuesday urged the National Highway Authority (NH A) to reconstruct the Manor Stream bridge that was washed away last year, saying the destruction of the bridge severely affected traffic between KP and Gilgit-Baltistan and impacted the tourism sector in Kaghan Valley.

`The NHA installed a temporary steel bridge after the Manor Stream bridge was washed away, and around a 2km stretch of the Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad Road was inundated by the Kunhar River during the flash floods in August last year. However, this steel bridge was also at risk of being swept away when streams and rivers swell dangerously during this year`s monsoon season, Mohammad Khalid Khan of Mahandri told reporters.

A group of locals and traders gathered at the steel bridge erected over the Manor stream and urged the prime minister to ensure an early reconstruction of the concrete bridge.

They said tourism activities in Kaghan Valley and traffic between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and GilgitBaltistan remained disrupted.

`This steel bridge, which only supports one-way traffic, cannot handle the heavy influx of visitors when the tourism season begins in April this year. It risks collapsing or being washed away, just like last year, said another resident.

He added that tourism activities in the valley were suspended for weeks after the flash floods destroyed the original bridge.

Seth Matiullah, the president of the Hoteliers Association, said the business community had raised the issue with the NHA general manager, calling for the urgent reconstruction of a concrete bridge.

`The tourism industry in the valley suffered massive financial losses last year when the MNJ Road was blocked to traffic after the bridge was destroyed.

`If the government fails to rebuild a concrete bridge, our businesses will be devastated,` he said.

ARCHERY CONTEST: The centuries-old traditional Mukha archery competition on Tuesday attracted a large crowd in the Bimbal Akazai area of Torghar district.

The event, organised jointly by the district administration and sports department, aimed to revive the traditional and rapidly vanishing game.

Besides local players, a seven-member traditional archery team from Mardan also showcased its remarkable skills and abilities in thegame.-Correspondent