July 30, 2002	Tuesday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 19,1423

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HARIPUR, July 29: After the refusal by the governments of Sindh and Punjab to give land to the people affected by Tarbela dam, the federal government has decided to pay some cash to legitimate claimants as compensation.

This was stated by the NWFP minister for revenue, Aminullah Gandapur, while speaking to the affected people in Khalabat Township here on Monday. He was accompanied by Tehsil Haripur Nazim Iftikhar Ahmad Khan.

About the claims, the minister said that the NWFP government had no spare land and the Sindh and Punjab governments had also shown their inability to do so.

The federal government is prepared to pay Rs100,000 against the 100 kanal claim, and all those who deposited their money in banks for claims would be returned with interest, he added.

About the allotment of agriculture land he said it does not seem justified to give others’ land to those affected by the construction of Tarbela dam.

On the demand to waive property tax Aminullah Gandapur said that though it’s not possible to undo the decision for a specific locality, but it could be kept in abeyance for a limited period. However, he promised to take the matter up with the governor.

He said that the government had already reduced the amount of tax from the rural population and now revised it to Rs250 on 10 marla house as against Rs1,200 in urban limits.

Tehsil Nazim Iftikhar Ahmad Khan, lamented the attitude of the past governments. He said that they had surrendered the land of their ancestors only in the interest of nation, but in return they were denied compensation.

It may be recalled that a commission, led by A.R. Siddqui, was instituted by Ayub Khan’s government, which had received over 11,000 claims; only 1,740 claims for agriculture land and 240 for plots were declared bona fide.

But when the present government came to power in October 1999, it distributed only 216 plots in FR Kala Dhaka.