KARAK: People of Terri union council of Banda Daud Shah on Monday staged a rally against a foreign oil and gas exploration company for releasing toxic effluents into the fields and natural watercourses.

The protest was staged outside the company’s central processing facility at Ahmadi Banda, with protesters demanding of the company to make proper arrangements for treating the waste water before it was released into the fields and natural watercourses to save environmental degradation.

The protest was led by former union council nazim Najeeb Dad, Aqleem Hayat and Najumullah. They carried banners and placards inscribed with slogans against the company and its community relation officers for ignoring the problems for the local people.

They complained that due to the release of toxic and untreated water from the CPF into the watercourses skin and eye diseases had increased in the localities. They criticised MOL’s community relation officers for not forwarding the problems of the local people to the company’s high-ups.

They said that the company had failed to put in place a proper drainage system for toxic water which proved hazardous for the crops and ruined the environment.

They alleged that the funds meant for uplift of the local community were being misused by the company’s officials and the contractors.

They said that the company had prepared the PC-I of a small barani dam in the area, which, they alleged, would inundate the localities and create more problems for the people. Instead, they demanded that the company should execute two water supply schemes to resolve water shortage in the area.

TMO WORKERS PROTEST: Tehsil municipal administration employees on Monday continued their strike against the attack on the secretary local government.

The protesters led by all workers federation’s district president Azam Khan gathered on the premises of TMA Karak and staged a sit-in there. Chief municipal officer Kamran Amjad also participated in the sit-in.

On the occasion, Azam Khan demanded arrest of the people involved in the attack on the official. He said that the workers would observe complete strike and would not provide municipal services to citizens till the arrest of the culprits.

Published in Dawn, Aug 12th, 2014