TOBA TEK SINGH: Scores of residents of villages on Tuesday refused to allow the National Highway Authority (NHA) staff to close a ‘100-year-old’ dirt-track by dumping earth for the construction of Karachi-Lahore-Peshawar motorway.

They staged a sit-in on the under-construction motorway, blocking it for dozens of trucks and trailers laden with earth to be dumped on the dirt-track.

The protesters’ leaders told the media that a 65-foot-wide and 3.5km-long dirt track (kutcha road) near 319-GB and 320-GB villages was being used by local farmers for the last more than 100 years for transportation of their agricultural produce to market. They said the same track also connected

Multan-Faisalabad road near Chak Kohal Kalan village to Pirmahal-Shorkot Cantonmenmt road at Chak 320-GB canal bridge.

They complained that during the motorway’s construction the NHA had dumped earth on the track, blocking it for the traffic.

They said the locals had staged a demonstration a few months ago against the blockage of the track and some NHA officials had assured them that it would not be closed. They said the officials had also pledged that an underpass would be built there to facilitate farmers’ movement.

They added that the area MPA, Mian Muhammad Rafiq, who belonged to the ruling PML-N, had suggested to the Punjab government that the dirt-track should be replaced with a metaled road to connect both Multan-Faisalabad and Pirmahal-Shorkot Cantonment roads to facilitate farmers and other commuters. The same track would also serve as a ring road for Pirmahal, the MPA had said.

However, the protesters said, instead of acting upon the MPA’s proposal or constructing an underpass or an overhead bridge as per NHA’s assurance, the track was being permanently closed by dumping earth.

Later, NHA Deputy Director Tasawwar Hussain and Pirmahal Assistant Commissioner Hafiz Muhammad Najeeb held talks with the protesters and reiterated the pledge to construct an underpass there.

Following the talks, the protesters dispersed peacefully.

Published in Dawn February 8th, 2017