June 18, 2008	Wednesday	Jamadi-us-Sani 13, 1429

SIALKOT, June 17: Hundreds of villagers of Head Marala vicinity on Tuesday demonstrated against what they said inordinate delay in the completion of the Sialkot-Head Marala Road project by the authorities concerned.

Many of the protesters were women and children who held banners and placards reflecting their grievances and chanted slogans against the district administration. The protesters alleged that District Nazim Akmal Cheema had ‘politicised’ the project and was allegedly adopting delaying tactics in the construction of the road as a punishment to the people for not voting for PML-Q candidate Muhammad Ajmal Cheema, the nazim’s elder brother, during the Feb 18 general election.

The protesters said the road had been dug up and craters developed on many of its portions, leaving it impassable. Workers of many factories located along the road had been facing immense problems and as are the residents of the areas around.

The Sialkot district administration had started the Rs300 million project one and-a-half years ago, said the protesters, demanding that the government should look into the matter and ensure that the road project was completed without further delay.