KOHAT: Wall of the 230-kanal Ahmed Faraz Park being constructed in Jarma area here has started crumbling before completion of the project, as substandard material is being used in its construction, sources said. Work on the project was started in 2013 with an initial allocation of Rs60 million.

When contacted, chief municipal officer, Kohat, said that work on the park would be completed sometime next year.

However, he expressed his ignorance about the progress of work, material used in it and problems being faced by the construction firm, as he had not visited the site during last one year.

The park is being constructed under the supervision of the tehsil municipal administration. The project was approved by former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor Masud Kausar, the brother of late poet Ahmed Faraz.

Despite the passage of one year no board or site plan is displayed at the location whereas two installments have been paid to the contractor. Presently, work on the project remains suspended, the sources said.

Residents of Kohat have appealed to KP Assembly Deputy Speaker Imtiaz Shahid to intervene and ensure that standard material is used in the project.

DISPUTE OVER MOUNTAIN: The district administration has summoned a jirga to resolve the 30-year-old dispute over the ownership of a mountain between Bezote tribe of Orakzai Agency and Mohammadzai tribe of Kohat. The jirga would be held at the Commissioner House here on Monday.

District development advisory committee chairman MPA Ziaullah Bangash and jirga members from Mohammadzai tribe called on Commissioner Jamaluddin at his office on Wednesday and discussed the matter with him. The jirga members included Haji Gul, Khan Badshah and others.

They said that despite the court verdict giving ownership of the mountain to Mohammadzai tribe, the Bezote tribe was not vacating the area and they had even constructed houses and warehouses there illegally.

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2014