LOWER DIR: Former provincial minister and Pakistan Peoples Party district president Mehmood Zeb Khan ‘forcibly’ stopped construction work on the building of Rescue 1122 here on Thursday, residents and official sources told this correspondent.

They said the contractor had started work on the site located near Timergara rest house when the former minister along with his supporters reached there and forced the labourers to stop work.

A heavy contingent of police was present on the occasion that averted a scuffle between the labourers and the minister’s supporters. Mehmood Zeb was of the view that the land on which the building was being erected belonged to his family and not only a local court but the high court as well had decided the case in his favour. He termed it part of political victimisation of opposition leaders by the government.

Chief Minister Mahmood Khan had inaugurated the project last year and approved funds for the official building of Rescue 1122.

AGHOSH FACILITY: Aghosh Al-Khidmat, a project of Al-Khidmat Foundation for hosting and bringing up orphan children, has planned to increase the number of children at its Gulabad facility.

Saeedullah, administrator of the facility, told mediapersons here that currently they were providing basic services like education, healthcare, residence, etc to 89 orphan children from different districts of Malakand division.

He said these children lacked parental support that was why AKF had launched the project to own them.

“The total budget of this centre is Rs15 million,” AKF district president Fazal Mehmood said, adding local philanthropists provided the expenses. He said Aghosh Gulabad centre was established in April 2019 and it was now expanding its services.

Published in Dawn, January 1st, 2021