KOHAT: Lack of incentives to market their produce nationally and internationally is forcing the owners of guava orchards to sell their farmland to be used for construction of markets and housing colonies to make up for the losses.

Haji Rasheed Paracha, former president of the Kohat Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told Dawn that if the cutting of guava tress went with the present speed Kohat would lose its prime speciality in near future.

Naveed, an orchard owner, said growing guava orchards gave them small profits compared to building shops and markets keeping in view the skyrocketing prices of real estate. He said an orchard gave them produce of hardly Rs200,000 once a year despite making huge investments.

Jarwanda area, which was famous for guava orchards, has been turned into several housing colonies. Same is the case with the orchards on the Bannu and Peshawar roads.

OPEN KUTCHERI: Addressing an open kutcheri of the tribesmen of Darra Adamkhel tribal subdivision on Monday, deputy commissioner Abdur Rehman said hurdles in the way of acquisition of land for setting up government departments was impeding development of the merged area.

Army officials, heads of departments and elders were also present.

Mr Rehman said under local traditions there had been a ban on sale and purchase of land in the tribal areas, which he said, should now be done away with mutually because the status of the hitherto tribal areas had changed after the merger.

He assured the tribesmen that all their problems would be resolved keeping in view the local customs.

He said unless the government departments were established no development work could be carried out in the area.

He said all the development schemes had been approved and funds allocated, but in the absence of offices the government was facing a critical situation.

On the occasion, the elders said they would convene a grand jirga and put the problems before it and try to find some solution to them.

The army officials said the government was serious in development of merged areas and wanted to create jobs for the youth, for which their cooperation was a prerequisite.

Published in Dawn, November 3rd, 2020