LANDI KOTAL: About 4,000 candidates including five women appeared in medical and physical tests to get recruited in Levies Force.

The authorities have advertised 187 vacant posts in Khyber Levies Force.

Officials of the political administration said that it was for the first time that female candidates applied for induction in the Levies Force. They said that selection of all the five female candidates was certain as they wanted to encourage women to come forward and serve in the force.

After selection, the services of those women personnel would mostly be utilised during search operations of houses of suspects along with body search of female passengers at different checkposts, officials said.

The administration also invited all the 157 candidates whose selection had been with held by a court order last year. Officials said that at least 120 of those candidates appeared in medical and physical tests on the last day of recruitment exercise which was held at the army camp in Landi Kotal.

A number of candidates, who were not selected in the last year recruitment exercise for filling of 157 vacancies, had approached Peshawar High Court with the contention that most of the selected candidates were either over-age or had not even applied for the posts but their names were included in the final list on the recommendations of some influential tribal elders and local parliamentarians. The case is still pending before the court.

Assistant Political Agent Saiful Islam told Dawn that services of Pakistan Testing Service had been acquired for the first time to ensure transparency in the selection of new Levies recruits. At present, the total number of Levies personnel in Khyber Agency is 1,200. The political administration of Khyber Agency intends to increase the number to at least 3,000 personnel in the coming years.

Published in Dawn, February 2nd, 2016