MANSEHRA: Tribesmen from Kolai area began marching on Sair Ghaziabad to stage a protest sit-in on the call of a jirga to expel the officials of the district administration out of the area.

“Hundreds and thousands of people have started marching on Sair Ghaziabad, where they will hold a sit-in tomorrow (Saturday) until the government restores the previous notification of the district headquarters,” former tehsil nazim Haji Amirzada told reporters in Kolai area on Friday.

He said the people of Kolai, Batara and Mera Madakhel areas would participate in the protest.

“We [Kolai tribesmen] warn the district administration that its officials should leave Sair Ghaziabad, the so-called district headquarters, otherwise a law and order situation may happen,” elder Qazi Saifullah told protesters.

He said former chief minister Pervez Khattak had notified Batara as the district headquarters of Kolai-Palas district in 2017 but the current chief minister of the same party, Mahmood Khan, cancelled the notification and notified Sair Ghaziabad as the new district headquarters.

“The change of district headquarters is unacceptable to us,” he said.

Warn admin of law and order situation

DEMOLITION: A jirga on Friday demanded of the district administration, police and tehsil municipal administration to demolish shops built in an old graveyard of Channia area here.

Former neighbourhood council nazim Mohammad Fareed told participants that the construction of shops in the cemetery had caused tensions in the area, so the relevant authorities should intervene to address them.

The jirga, which was attended by the people from three urban union councils, called for the early demolition of graveyard shops.

Elder Mohammad Asghar complained that the additional deputy commissioner and tehsil municipal administration promised action on the issue, but to no avail.

DEO OFFICE CLOSED: The Torghar district administration on Friday closed the offices of the district education officer and a government boys high school over the detection of coronavirus among staff members and students.

On the special directives of the deputy commissioner, the health department has launched the Covid-19 testing of students, teachers and other staff of schools in Torghar, where educational institutions are open.

The Judbah school was closed over three virus cases and the DEO’s over five cases.

The disinfection of both buildings has begun.

In an official order, the district health officer said those testing positive for coronavirus were isolated at home.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2021