PESHAWAR, March 6: The NWFP irrigation department has directed all the district coordination officers (DCOs) in the province to remove encroachment nullahs and streams to minimise the threat of flood, officials said.

An official said that both government departments and private sector had raised temporary and permanent encroachment blocking the routs of rivers and streams in different areas.

In Peshawar, Charsadda and Mardan, government departments had constructed healthcare centres, schools and police stations blocking the flow of water, he pointed out.

Officials said people had occupied land along the bank of Sur Khwar along the Hayatabad Township in the provincial capital and turned the area into a colony.

The city district government had constructed a road to facilitate the inhabitants of the colony, they said.

They said the irrigation department had directed the defunct municipal corporation to stop construction along the bank of the water channel but instead of taking action against the illegal occupation, electricity, water and telephone facilities were provided in the area.

The officials said encroachment along the river banks and in the water ways of the nullahs, streams and irrigation channels was on the rise across the province which created operational problems during floods.

They said that under Section 10 of the River and Lake Protection Ordinance 2002, it was the responsibility of the tehsil municipal administrations (TMAs) to check and remove all encroachment which endangered public life and caused damage to property.

The department has asked the DCOs to direct the TMAs to take action against the encroachment.