MINGORA, Feb 14: The local women took to streets and blocked Saidu Sharif-Mingora Road here on Thursday to protest prolonged power outages and loadshedding of natural gas in the area.

It was for the first time in the history of Swat that women, most of them house wives from Saidu Sharif and adjoining areas, came on roads to press the government for acceptance of their demands.

The protesting women blocked the main road for all kinds of vehicular traffic and chanted slogans against the government. They threatened to besiege the offices of Wapda and SNGPL if loadshedding was not stopped forthwith.

MEETING: The technical review committee held a meeting at University of Swat here on Thursday to examine the master plan and PC-I for construction of the main campus of the university at Charbagh.

The members of the committee including University of Swat Vice-chancellor Dr Mohammad Jahanzeb Khan, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan Vice-chancellor Prof Dr Ihsan Ali, Dr Naser Ali Khan, chief planning officer of Higher Education Department Syed Raza Shah, director works University of Engineering and Technology Peshawar Sadiq Ahmad and project director Waqar Toru attended the meeting.

They visited the campus site at Charbagh and inspected the location. They were briefed about the project.

The committee members observed the master plan and PC-I with keen interest and proposed various amendments.

The vice-chancellor of the university said on the occasion that as soon as funds were provided to the university, construction of main campus at Charbagh would be started.