RAWALPINDI, Oct 13: The district administration and police have been unable to tackle the problem of shortage of transport vehicles and high freight charges for transporting relief goods to the affected areas.

On one hand the transporters have increased freight charges while on the other people in rent a car business are charging high rates from foreigners desirous of visiting the earthquake- affected areas.

Relief workers have complained that transporters had increased their fare from Rs3,000 to Rs6,000 for Azad Kashmir and Balakot. Foreign mediapersons are worst affected by this exploitation as transporters charge double the fare.

A truck driver who would normally charge Rs5,000 per trip to Azad Kashmir was now charging Rs8,000 to Rs10,000, a goods agency official said, adding that there are some good people who have been transporting relief goods free of cost.

Explaining the reasons behind the shortage of transport, he said the police and armymen had engaged their trucks while a large number of drivers and truck owners, who belong to the quake-hit areas, had left for their home towns.

A relief worker, who named himself as Raja Javaid, said the police and district administration should adopt the same tactics which they usually did during elections when transport was required and for chief minister’s processions.

When DPO Rawalpindi Saud Aziz’s attention was drawn towards the transportation and fare problems, he said such complaints had also been brought to his notice.

British surgeons: A seven-member British surgeons team arrived here on Thursday, Online adds.

The team will set up medical camps in AJK districts of Bagh and Rawalakot besides Muzaffarabad for the treatment of people injured in the earthquake.

The British surgeons also met with Pakistan Muslim League President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Senator Mushahid Hussain Syed and former foreign minister Gohar Ayub.

After the meeting, the team told mediapersons that they had brought a huge stock of medicine and would leave no stone unturned in providing relief to the affected people.