DERA GHAZI KHAN, Jan 1: Despite rich in mineral resources, the tribal area of Dera Ghazi Khan is still backward due to the negligence of authorities concerned.

Consisting of five union councils, the tribal area has emerged as new tehsil under the new district government system.

The tribal area is spread over an area of 2,500 square miles in mountainous Sulaiman Range that runs from north-south towards the DG Khan district and touches the boundaries of NWFP and Balochistan provinces.

According to the census, its population is 126,000 with 70,000 registered voters. Locals and notables however put the figures to 200,000.

There exist 272 boys primary schools, 15 boys middle schools, nine boys high schools, 88 girls high schools, three girls middle schools and two girls high schools in the tribal area.

Most of these institutions are short of teaching staff and without proper facilities and buildings. At least 381 posts of teachers are lying vacant in the Dera Ghazi Khan district, including its tribal tehsil.

Depending upon livestock, the tribal people have not much land for cultivation.

The area also lacks in proper means of communication. There is need to construct network of roads in the tribal area.

The newly-elected tehsil Nazim Usman Khan Bozdar told Dawn that he had a plan to construct a network of roads which would link up five union councils and the Balochistan as well.

In all, he said, 10 metalled roads would be constructed besides repairing Zain-Barthi Road in the tribal area.

He said that he had asked the authorities concerned to provide three bulldozers and two high-powered drilling rig machines for the tribal area. This would not only help raise the income of TMA, but also enable to construct roads and water supply schemes and repair of existing roads in minimum amount.

It is pertinent to mention that billions of rupees have been spent on the construction of water supply schemes, but 98 per cent of them are not functioning.

The tehsil Nazim deplored that the only RHC at Barthi had no doctor and allied facilities for the entire population of Tuman Bozdar and Tuman Qaisrani. He demanded the posting of required medical staff against sanctioned vacant posts, besides providing an ambulance and an X-Ray machine.

A mobile medical team should also be made available for providing medical cover to the people of far-flung areas in the tribal tehsil, he said.

The Nazim urged the authorities concerned to include the newly-created tehsil tribal area in the gazette notification of the Revenue department.