MANSEHRA: Residents of Darband, a town in Oghi Tehsil, on Saturday took to the streets, seeking share in the royalty of Tarbela Hydropower Project.
The protesters, who were holding banners and placards in support of their demands, also marched through various roads.
“Our forefathers have rendered sacrifices but successive governments despite making announcements kept us deprived of our share in dam royalty being released annually from the Federal Government to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government,” said Habib Sakhi, Naib Nazim Darband, while addressing the gathering of protesters.
He said that their house, agricultural land and even graveyards were inundated under Tarbala Dam reservoir alongside River Indus. “Our agitation is purely for a non-political motive and we will continue it until government meets our demand,” said Sakhi.
“We want our share to be spent on welfare of our people and development of Darband, which lacks basic amenities,” he maintained.
He said that despite announcements by local lawmakers, there was no girls’ secondary school in Darband and people were without civic amenities.
“A local MPA announced that Darband would be given status of a tehsil of Mansehra but it seems merely eyewash,” said Sakhi, adding that local lawmakers have failed to deliver.
Mohammad Mubashar said that people of Darband sought their rights’ protection. “We are compelled to take to the streets for our royalty and we will not bow to any pressure until government accepts our demands and spends dam royalty on welfare projects here,” said Mubashar.
Meanwhile, MPA Mohammad Abrar alias Iqbal told reporters that Darband would be given the status of a tehsil soon. “Paperwork has been completed to make Darband a tehsil,” said Abrar.
He said the new tehsil would consist of union councils of Nikka Pani, Darband and Dara Shanaya.
Indus Highway blocked in protest against non-provision of basic amenities:
Karak Right Movement (KRM), a rights organization, blocked the Indus Highway near Jail Chowk for their rights and strongly condemned the government over non-provision of basic amenities to the masses in this modern era.
The protestors led by Hayat Khattak, Shabbir Khattak and others on Saturday morning marched towards Indus Highway to stage a protest demonstration against the non-availability of basic amenities to the masses of the richest district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and later the central president of Awami Raj Party and MNA from Muzafargarh Jamshed Dasti joined the protestors.
They blocked the Indus Highway for an hour and long queue of vehicles were witnessed on both sides of the highway and the passengers’ experienced severe mental torture due to blockade of the highway. The speakers on the occasion strongly condemned that the incumbent government miserably failed even to provide electricity, gas and drinking water to the people despite of having hefty funds of oil and gas royalty funds in the district.
They regretted that the people were experiencing a cruel load shedding in the district and there was no gas to run their kitchens despite the fact that the gas had been explored on the soil district Karak.
The speakers said that the gas of district Karak has been provided to Punjab but the local population facing gas shortage in the district and alleged that it was well-thought conspiracy against the people of district Karak.
They resolved that they would not let the government to supply gas to other areas if the step-motherly treatment was continued with the people of district Karak.
The elders on the occasion said that people were forced to drink impure water which was misfit for human consumption in many parts of the district and even there was no drinking water in the district headquarters and the dwellers of the Karak city were forced to purchase the potable water like other commodity.
They resolved that such like situation was no more tolerable to the masses.
On the occasion MNA Jamshed Dasti said that there was no fact in the slogans of change in the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and said that there was no difference between the police of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. He said that the oil and gas had been explored on the soil of district Karak and the local people have the foremost right over it. He said that after 18th amendment the provinces have become autonomous but the PTI government failed to develop the province.
The lawmaker said that in CPEC specific areas were being obliged while the other areas were being ignored deliberately.
Later police reached to the spot and tried to open the road forcefully which narrow escape clash between the police and the protesters. Later the protestors open the road and dispersed peacefully.
