KOHAT: The district administration here on Friday issued notices to shopkeepers to remove encroachments within three days otherwise action would be taken against them.

According to a handout issued here, additional assistant commissioner, revenue, Tahir Ali accompanied by the TMA officials and presidents of bazaar unions visited various bazaars. He issued notices to shopkeepers one by one and asked them to remove extensions and kiosks within three days.

Mr Ali said that the provincial government was serious in this regard and after the deadline indiscriminate action would be taken to remove all the encroachments. He said that the drive was in progress for the last many months, but extended shops could still be seen on the drains and roads.

Markazi Tajir Action Committee secretary general Haji Abid told this correspondent on phone that under the agreement the anti-encroachment staff would only use small excavator or labourers for digging the drains where there were electricity lines and they would not touch the sheds with low height. However, he claimed that the administration itself bulldozed its decisions. He said that it had been agreed that the shopkeepers would themselves remove the sheds and after digging of drains they would install them again.

Mr Abid said that all efforts of the district administration would go in vain because the TMA had registered 750 handcarts for bazaar, which were banned through a resolution in the tehsil council. He said that he knew about the registration of over 600 handcarts whose owners had been paying money to the TMA staff.

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2018