PESHAWAR, Dec 23: The road network of Orakzai Agency is being upgraded at a cost of Rs245.420 million.

This was told to NWFP Governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah, who was on a day-long visit to the agency, at a briefing here on Monday at Kalaya.

Political Agent Tashfeen Khan informed him that with the completion of development projects in communication sector, tribesmen of even the remotely-located areas would get easy access to every part of the agency.

He said Rs171.379 million were being spent on 53 uplift schemes— 36 ongoing and 17 new— in different sectors, and 65 per cent expenditure had been made so far.  

MNA Ghazi Gulab Jamal and governor Secretary Sahibzada Saeed Ahmed were also present on the occasion.

The political agent told the governor that Rs60.357 million were being spent to improve education facilities and Rs71.251 million on medicare facilities at the district level.

Speaking on a point, the governor directed the political agent to rectify the disparity prevailing between the boys and girls schools in the agency.

The governor urged him that savings in the provincial budget should be used to raise the number of education institutions for women and directed him to relax the criteria set for the establishment of new institutions.

The provincial government wanted to minimize the control of directorates of education and health in decision making at the agency level, the governor remarked, saying that powers and authority should be devolved to the gross-root level to strengthen the mechanism of decision making.

The governor, on the issue of vacant posts in education sector, directed the Fata education director to recruit raw-handed candidates and impart them the required training, if trained teachers were not available.

On the Wapda issue, the governor said the government would introduce a justified taxation system so that the financial problems of the province could be sorted out easily.

The governor was also informed that all the irrigation and industries related power connections had been properly materialized.