KOHAT: In a crackdown on sale of illegal weapons in Bannu Bazaar here on Friday, the police seized a huge quantity of arms from a shop and arrested its owner.

The weapons were to be ferried to different parts of the country and sold to local arms dealers.

Acting on the directives of district police officer Javed Iqbal, a team led by DSP Bashir Dad and SHO city Fayyaz Khan raided the shop on intelligence reports. They found 19 rifles, 83 pistols and 100 chargers which were being smuggled to other parts of the country. The accused, Zahid Khan, was booked.

Meanwhile, in a raid, the food authority officials sealed two warehouses after confiscating 2,000 cartons of fake beverages.

The authority’s acting assistant director Mohammad Salam and food officer Siraj Ahmed raided the godowns on a tip-off. The beverages were to be supplied to Lachi tehsil and various parts of the city.

Meanwhile, owner of a shop, which was sealed the other day for selling fake juices, attempted to break the locks and reopen the outlet allegedly on the permission of local elders. However, the attempt resulted in an exchange of arguments between the elders and the food authority officials.

The food authority deputy director Kamran Khan told Dawn that they had seized 90 cartons of fake beverages from the shop in Tappi area and sealed it the other day.

He said the trader would now be booked and fined Rs40,000.

POPULATION DAY: District population officer Ghulam Fareed Marwat has said due to Covid-19 pandemic the population day will be observed cautiously and restricted to only hanging banners about awareness at important squares on Saturday (today).

He, however, said walks and seminars under strict SOPs would be organised. He stressed the need for maintaining gap in childbirths, and ensuring health of mother and child.

WATER SHORTAGE: Acute water shortage has hit parts of lower Orakzai where people and farmers cannot get required quantity of water from the tubewells.

The most-affected areas are Bazaar Garhi, Wazir Garhi, Teri, Kandar, Saidan Kakay and Palosai.

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2020