May 20, 2002	Monday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 7, 1423

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ISLAMABAD, May 19: Rapid repatriation of displaced Afghans is being predicted in the coming days in due to the heatwave sweeping across the NWFP, and the tensions mounting on the Pakistan-India border, sources in the Afghan refugees management told Dawn on Saturday.

Besides, the crackdown, on illegal immigrants and extremist elements during which scores of Afghans were hauled up, has led the majority of Afghans to avail the option of returning home.

This repatriation is the result of the reciprocal visits by the Afghan and Pakistan delegations which also agreed on the reconstruction of Afghan infrastructure, sources said.

Also, Islamabad, in coordination with WFP and FAO, has made strenuous efforts to ensure that the food grain supply to Afghanistan is not interrupted. As a result most essential items have already reached to the remotest of areas in Afghanistan.

At present there are some 3.1 million Afghan refugees mainly living in refugee tentage villages in the NWFP and Balochistan with a sizable number scattered in urban centres like Peshawar and Quetta, officials said.

In the recent weeks the repatriation process, though had picked up specially after the establishment of the interim government of Hamid Karzai, but the bulk of the DPs was still shy to return due to lack of infrastructure, transportation/logistic as well as other economic activities there.

There are also reports of fraudulent utilization of the repatriation incentives which the UNHCR was offering to the returnees as good number of them return back from unfrequented routes after receiving cash and commodity compensation from various outlets in the NWFP and Balochistan.

It was reported that large numbers of DPs had misguided the authorities by availing the compensation of 100kg wheat and $100.

The cash award has now been withheld.