SWAT: The chairman of District Development Advisory Committee (DDAC), Fazal Hakeem Khan Yousafzai, said here on Wednesday that transfer of prisoners from Daggar and Timargara jails to the reconstructed Swat jail would be started from January 22.

He was chairing a meeting regarding the construction of the building of Swat jail at DDAC office in Saidu Sharif.

Jail Superintendent Ayub Badshah, Good Governance Secretary Saifullah and other officials and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) district general secretary Zahid Khan participated in the meeting.

The jail superintendent briefed the meeting on the progress made on the reconstruction of Swat jail and transfer of prisoners to the new building of the prison.

Fazal Hakeem Khan said that keeping in view the special instructions of Chief Minister Mahmood Khan, the remaining work regarding facilities in the jail should be completed soon and arrangements for the inauguration of the prison should also be completed.

He said that chief minister would inaugurate the project soon. Owing to the problems faced by prisoners and their families due to absence of the building of jail in Swat, the government accelerated work on reconstruction of the prison.

“Fortunately, the building will soon be completed which will solve the problems arising due to non-existence of jail in Swat,” said Mr Khan.

He said that facilities for the prisoners in the jail would also be improved in accordance with the law.

The jail was pulled down by the district government after it developed cracks in the 2005 earthquake. Since then, the local prisoners have been sent to Timergara and Buner jails.

The prison was built in 1957 during the rule of Miangual Jahanzeb, the last ruler of the princely state of Swat. Since the destruction of the jail building, the residents of Swat and Shangla have been facing problems.

They have repeatedly demanded of the government to complete the construction of jail soon.

Published in Dawn, January 21st, 2021