KHAR: The authorities have not paid July allowance to the elders and stipends to needy people in Bajaur Agency, sources in the political administration told Dawn on Monday.

They, however, did not mention the reasons for stoppage of monetary benefits. According to sources, elders and deserving persons have been receiving the amounts since along. However, the sources believed that lack of funds could be the possible reason for suspension of payments.

The pro-administration elders and needy people, who have been the beneficiary of the monthly allowances for last several years, confirmed the suspension of payments by the authorities.

Taking to Dawn, tribal elders on condition of anonymity said they did not receive their allowances for July. They said they had been visiting the local administration offices since first week of August to get the July allowance, but to no avail.

The elders said the allowance was reward of their cooperation with the local administration, adding they would raise the issue with senior officials because this was the third time that their allowances had been stopped.

An official in the political agent office in Khar, who oversees the monthly allowances and stipends, confirmed the stopping of July payments to elders.

Requesting anonymity because he was not authorised to talk to media, he said the payment was stopped on the directives of political agent. The official said shortage of funds could be the possible reason.

However, he said payments had been stopped only for July.

STUDENTS PROTEST: The students of Government College of Technology, Khar, on Monday staged a demonstration against shortage of teachers and lack of facilities.

Chanting slogans against the officials of directorate of technical education and Fata secretariat, the protesting students gathered on the main Inayat Kallay-Khar road, blocking the highway for over an hour.

They said a number of teachers in the college had been absent from their duties since the college was opened in 2012, creating problems for them. They criticised the officials of directorate of technical education and Fata secretariat for keeping silence over the situation.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2016