AJK appoints new tourism dept chief

The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government on Tuesday appointed senior bureaucrat Raja Shahid Hussain as director general of the Tourism and Archaeology Department. Hussain, a BS-19 senior-most additional secretary, replaced BPS-20 officer Shaukat Ali. The Services and General Administration Department issued the notification for Hussain's transfer and posting as part of a relaxation in the government's transfer and posting policy. Hussain was serving as an additional secretary in the Higher Education Department prior to this new assignment. He has also held several key administrative positions, including additional secretary home and served as head of an attached department under the Information Department. Meanwhile, the government has attached Shaukat Ali to the Services and General Administration Department until further orders. The appointment comes as the AJK government focuses on improving tourism-related facilities and promoting the region's tourism potential. In AJK tourism industry in AJK earns more than ten billion rupees yearly.