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DERA GHAZI KHAN, Jan 13: An increase in incidents of assault on police officials has been indicated in a report for the year 2001, showing a picture of widening gulf between the police and the people. As many as 31 such incidents took place in the defunct Dera Ghazi Khan division last year while during 2000 only 17 incidents of attack on police occurred.
The increase started with the implementation of the half-baked devolution plan. Now there are no magistrates to tackle a law and order situation without using the gun. They (the magistrates) were a bridge between the people and administration, including the law enforcement agencies.
Since August 2001, the police have been working rather independently. Incidents of escape of prisoners from police custody also have increased. At least three such incidents took place during shifting of inmates to jail or judicial lock-up. A recent incident took place in Leiah district in which at least 11 prisoners managed to flee from the prison van. They are still at large.
Highway robberies could not be controlled in the four districts of defunct Dera Ghazi Khan division. According to the report, 164 such incidents took place in the division as against 160 during 2000.
Similarly, the rate of abduction and kidnap for ransom incidents could not be reduced. As many as 351 incidents of abduction took place last year compared to 354 during 2000. Up to 17 incidents of kidnapping took place during 2001 as against 11 during 2000. As it is, burglary, extortion, theft, and cattle theft could not be controlled.
The incidents of rioting also have increased. There were nine such incidents in the defunct division. As many as 266 people were murdered last year as against 286 in 2000. The first incident of assault on police which claimed the life of a police officer, took place in Dera Ghazi Khan district last year.
ELECTION: The election of District Bar Association, Dera Ghazi Khan, will be held on Jan 14 in a different atmosphere as compared to the previous years. The reshuffle in the existing rival groups of DBA is significant.
Zafar Ahmad Khan Lond presented himself for the top slot and parted ways with Nasim Khosa (the sitting president).
Earlier, the Lond and Khosa groups were in one organization. The rival group of Khosa-cum-Lond group, led by Malik Salim, advocate (member of the Punjab Bar Council), welcomed the situation and declared support for Mr Lond. Now, the Khosa group has picked Iqbal Saqib, advocate, of its rival group, for presidentship of the association.
Malik Iqbal remained general secretary twice, in 1986 and 1991. He belongs to the like-minded group of the PML while Zafar Khan Lond has association with the PPP. Mr Lond remained at the top slot of the district Bar twice, in 1995 and 2000.
Umar Farooq Khosa, sitting secretary-general, is contesting for general secretary with the support of the Nasim Khosa group. He held this office in 2000. His rival, Khurshid Khan Kalyani, who held this office in 1999, is trying to muster support of Malik-cum-Lond group.
Another contestant for general secretary is Arif Gormani, advocate. There are two candidates for vice-president, Ghulam Yasin Aliani (PPP-oriented) and Mian Fahim Akbar (Jamaat-i-Islami oriented).
The total strength of the Dera Bar is 372. The votes of the young and newcomers will play a decisive role in the election. According to a survey, Malik-cum-Lond group is popular among the young advocates.
FLAT RATE: The farmers of Pachadh (an arid zone) have demanded restoration of flat rate of electricity. Flat rates are in vogue in the NWFP and Balochistan, said district Naib Nazim Javed Iqbal Qaisrani.
Dera Ghazi Khan and Rajanpur districts consist of 3.5 million acres of plain land and 600,000 acres of tribal area. Only 1.1 million acres have the provision of canal irrigation water, 900,000 acres are fed by Taunsa barrage and 200,000 acres will be fed by Chashma Right Bank Canal. The remaining 3 million acres depend on rain.
Mahmood Khan Bozdar, editor of the first weekly of the area and an expert in the affairs of tribal area and Pachadh, told Dawn that besides the restoration of flat rate for the farmers, it was necessary to evolve a system to control the water of hill torrents for irrigation and forestation in the arid zone.
He said several schemes were devised to control the strong hill torrent but none could be adopted fully. He maintained that before the establishment of the canal system in 1913, the farmers of arid zone had the system of collective cultivation and grew gram, rice, jawar, bajra and wheat. The crops of arid zone were famous in the whole of Punjab.
The restoration of flat rate in Pachadh (arid zone) would help in getting water both for drinking and irrigation.
