TIMERGARA: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf district councillor Saira Shamsul Qamar on Tuesday accused the local leadership of Awami National Party of giving gas connections on the basis of political affiliation.

It is to mention here that during the last ANP government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a project was approved in 2013 to provide natural gas to all parts of Lower Dir. Senator Zahid Khan was tasked with the distribution of connections.

Talking to reporters, Ms Qamar, whose father, late Shamsul Qamar, was a diehard activist of the ANP, said she was too offered gas connection if she hoisted the ANP flag on her house, but she refused.

“We strongly condemn this act as it is political manipulation,” Ms Saira said, adding she had raised the issue several times in the district council but to no avail. She said it was the right of each citizen to get gas connection but the ANP leadership had been politicising it. She demanded of the SNGPL authorities to take notice of the issue.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Fayyaz of Shingrai Timergara told journalists that he had paid Rs25,000 as urgent fee for getting gas connection six months ago, but he was yet to get the connection. He said the SNGPL local officials had told him to pay urgent fee and get connection in two months.

He alleged that influential people were getting gas meters easily, but common citizens were facing difficulty in getting the same.

AIOU WORKSHOP: Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) district coordinator in Lower Dir Ali Haidar on Tuesday said the 12-day workshop for students of associate degree in education (ADE) would be commencing from April 29.

Talking to journalists, he said there had been seven workshop centres in the district, adding separate centres for female students had also been set up in Chakdara, Talash, Timergara and Khall.

He asked the students to ensure their presence during the workshop at their respective centres.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2017