PESHAWAR: Many North Waziristan tribesmen settled in Peshawar for a long time are understood to be among those turning up at a local facility for registration as internally displaced persons to get financial assistance.

Scores of people, who have been displaced from the troubled tribal agency due to the Zarb-i-Azb military operation against militants of late, thronged the registration centre on Monday holding computerised national identity cards.

Women were among them.

Mismanagement marred the registration process at the centre set up by the Fata Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) at a government college in Hayatabad.

Ten registration desks were established for men and four for women with officials hoping 5,000 people would be registered.

IDPs claim tribesmen long away from agency visiting registration centre

A mobile unit of National Database Registration Authority (Nadra) was also deployed at the centre to make CNICs for IDPs on the spot.

However, it turned out to be useless as the Nadra officials insisted they couldn’t make cards for IDPs unless the assistant political agent of Miramshah confirmed applicants were permanent residents of the area.

Mohammad Haseeb of the FDMA said 65,000 displaced families had been registered so far.

He, however, said the number could come down after the verification of applicants by the Nadra.

Also see: Footprints: Dispatches from North Waziristan

The FDMA had announced the people displaced from Miramshah would be registered on Monday and those from Boya and Datakhel on July 8.

However, the residents of areas other than Miramshah also reached the centre causing disturbance.

The people waiting outside the centre complained that registration process was extremely slow due to shortage of staff.

Abdul Samad, an IDP from Miramshah, said people made queues before dawn and waited for their turn in the scorching heat.

He said the registration process began very late.

The IDP said majority of the people, who had been living in Peshawar for 10 years or so, were also trying to get themselves registered as displaced persons.

He said every person with national identity cards from North Waziristan posed himself or herself as IDP, an unfair practice.

Malik Mir Nawaz, an elder of Miramshah, also complained the people, who had left North Waziristan before or after operation, had also lined up outside the registration centre.

He said the North Waziristan residents living in Peshawar for five years or so didn’t deserve to be registered as IDPs.

Also read: General Raheel visits North Waziristan battle zone

The IDP registration process in Peshawar will continue until July 14.

The residents of Mirali will be registered on July 9, those of Dosali and Garyum on July 10, those of Razmak and Shawal on July 11, those of Ghulam Khan on July 12 and the rest on July 14.

The government has announced every registered family from North Waziristan will receive Rs40,000 cash grant for Ramazan, while Rs10,000 will be paid to every displaced family every month thereafter.

According to an official, the cash grant is being disbursed to IDPs by SIM cards under an agreement signed between the government and a foreign cellular company.

He said the FDMA was distributing activated SIM cards after registration.

Published in Dawn, July 8th , 2014