KOHAT: Lachi tehsil, which gets 50 per cent share of the district in oil and gas royalty funds for possessing the natural resources, is the most backward region owing to negligence of the elected representatives.

The LG members and elders threatened to block the road in first phase and then boycott polio vaccination and coming general elections in protest if provision of basic amenities to the people was not ensured.

Talking to Dawn, Sodal village councillor Mohammad Haneef said the locals had been facing water shortage for last 70 years, adding the incumbent law minister, who is from the area, had announced Rs380 million two years ago to resume work on an abandoned water supply scheme from Shadi Khel Canal, but to no avail.

He said millions of rupees had been spent on the project during the tenure of MPA Dr Iqbal Fana, but the work was left incomplete.

“With little interest and investment it can be revived and the people can get rid of the perennial problem,” he said, adding families had to bring water in cans from the Kohat springs.

Mr Haneef said the government had sanctioned Rs157,000 each for installing a hand pump at homes which, he added, could be done with Rs40,000. He said major chunk would go to the pockets of the contractor and officials as commission.

He said they had met with the secretary local government and assistant director local government, Kohat, suggesting that instead of hiring contractors for installing hand pumps nazims and councillors should be given money for the purpose, but to no avail.

The councillor said the area’s main road had been constructed twice in a year, but even then it was not usable. He regretted that due to absence of animal husbandry hospital their cattle died of diseases.

District councillor Mashal said several inquiries into the water scheme on which more than Rs80 million had been spent remained pending.

He said due to unemployment and absence of education the youth were becoming robbers and thieves. He said in the only high school of the area there was no science teacher for years. The standard of education has deteriorated as the appointment of teachers was done on the recommendations of lawmakers, he pointed out.

Village naib nazim Khan Gul said water of the springs had been declared unfit for human use, but no action had been taken in that regard. He said the PTI government promised devolving powers to the grassroots level, but the tehsil was the most neglected area. He said he would resign from the tehsil council because he was of no use for his people.”

He said the hospital had been facing shortage of doctors and people had to take patients to Kohat which is about 40 kilometres away.

He said the law minister, after being elected from the PK-39, did not bother to visit his voters, adding many delegations met him to help address their problems, but to no avail.

Published in Dawn, October 15th, 2017