PESHAWAR, July 7: Residents of several localities in the Town-III have expressed concern over the presence of private hostels there and have demanded of the administration to close them down immediately.
“The presence of hostels in the area has become a source of nuisance and embarrassment for the residents of Town-III,” said Asghar Iqbal a resident of Danishabad locality which has three private hostels.
According to him, the hostellers have served to restrict the movement of girls in the locality. Most of the students play music loudly, disturbing the residents at night, he said.
The residents of the Shaheen Town have also become weary of the hostels there. The area has about 14 hostels, where hundreds of people live.
“Several times there have been incidents in which the hostellers have posed threats to the local population, especially girls,” said Aziz Shah, a resident of the Shaheen Town. He said the presence of the hostels could create serious law and order situation for the Town-III administration as well as for the provincial government because the local people often entered into disputes with the hostellers.
The University Town is another locality which is facing problems, not only due to the hostels but also because of the presence of guest houses there.
Nazim of Town-III Shakirullah Khan told Dawn that two hostels in the Danishabad area have already been sealed besides four others in the Shaheen Town after numerous complaints by the residents.
“We gave them notices a year ago to close down their illegal hostels. But we want the students to complete their academic session,” he said. According to him, the owners of the hostels took Rs3,000 from each hosteller and allotted one room to about 10 students.
The nazim said a campaign had been launched against the hostels because they could create serious problems. “Several residents have approached me and warned me of dire consequences in case these outlets were not closed,” said Mr Khan.
