LANDI KOTAL: The local health workers and chemists observed a complete strike here on Monday against the planned privatisation of agency headquarter hospital.

Almost all the medicine shops at Hospital Chowk remained closed while health staff didn’t perform duty. The tribal elders and representatives of various political parties also participated in the protest camp established at the Hospital Chowk to express solidarity with the protesting health workers and drug dealers.

Fazlur Rehman, a representative of the health workers, said that no details regarding privatisation of the hospital were shared with them by officials of the Fata directorate of health.

Tribal elders, political workers visit camp set up by hospital staff, shopkeepers

He said that they approached the officials concerned several times to get details about the privatisation procedure but to no avail. “The plan, if put in practice, would render a number of local employees jobless. The local people would be overburdened with high cost of medical care at the hospital after its privatisation,” said Mr Rehman.

Hazrat Wali, a leader of PPP, said that local people were not happy with the privatisation plan and they would oppose it at every forum.

JOURNALISTS: The local journalists here on Tuesday demanded strict action against a khasadar allegedly involved in beating their colleague and stopping him from his professional responsibilities.

In an emergency meeting at the press club here, they accused Khasadar Sarfaraz Afridi of hitting Shamsul Amin with the butt of his rifle and snatching his mobile phone and camera when the journalist was covering a protest demonstration at the local National Database and Registration Authority office.

Shamsul Amin, who works for an English daily, said that the khasadar also used abusive language and threatened him of dire consequences. He received multiple injuries on his neck, shoulder and back. He was later provided necessary medical assistance at the local hospital despite a protest strike by paramedics against the hospital’s privatisation.

The meeting demanded immediate termination of the khasadar and warned of a boycott of all official functions if the demand was not met.

ACCIDENT: At least three people were injured in two separate road accidents here on Tuesday.

Khasadar officials said that Shah Mohammad and Tahir Khan received injuries when a truck overturned on the main road leading to Bazaar-Zakhakhel at Ziyarrai Sar.

The driver of a car was critically injured when his vehicle met an accident due to over-speeding at Satara Meel on the main Peshawar Torkham Highway. All the injured were shifted to local hospital for treatment.

Published in Dawn, November 1st, 2017