MINGORA: Residents of different localities of Mingora on Tuesday warned the Water and Sanitation Service Company, Swat, of launching a protest movement if the water supply was not restored to their areas forthwith.

The residents of Sethi Mohallah, Miangano Cham, Chinar Colony and Amankot complained that the water supply to their areas had been suspended more than 10 days ago without any intimation.

“This summer is the hottest in the history of Swat, but the people of the lower parts are facing acute water shortage,” Zahir Shah, an environmental activist and resident of Amankot, lamented.

The residents said that since the beginning of summer the WSSC had cut short their share of water. “We were already in trouble with the little amount of water supplied by WSSC, but now the water supply has been completely suspended for last 10 days,” Shaukat Ali, a resident of Chinar Colony, deplored.

Inmates of Miangano Cham also complained of suspension of water supply for last 10 days. They said when they contacted WSSC officials they did not respond.

“In the scorching heat we have to go to far-flung areas to fetch water for daily use. Our nearby water springs have also dried up,” Fahad Khan of Miangano Cham, said.

Majority of children from the affected areas can be seen fetching water from far-off places troubled by the sweltering heat.

“I along with other children of my village travel half an hour daily to fetch water. When I go to bed my entire body aches as I carry water cans on my head,” Kashmala, a small girl in Amankot area, said.

The residents said the WSSC officials did not take up their complaints. No official of WSSC answered this correspondent’s calls to know their version on the matter.

STUDENTS ALLOWED TO SIT EXAM: The Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Swat, has allowed the ninth and 10th graders to sit the next supplementary examination after getting their passed papers cancelled.

A news release issued by the Swat BISE ere the other day said the students, who were declared successful in the recently-announced SSC exam results but they wanted to reappear in one or more papers, were allowed to do so in the supplementary examination 2019 after they formally got those papers cancelled. It asked such students to pay paper cancellation fees.

Earlier, the board had announced that the students wanting to cancel their papers after clearing them in the recent SSC examination won’t be allowed to sit the supplementary examination and that they would have to appear in the annual examinations only.

Published in Dawn, July 10th, 2019