PESHAWAR: A Peshawar High Court bench has directed Water and Sanitation Services Peshawar (WSSP) and public works department to complete work on 13 tubewells in National Assembly constituency, NA-31, and make these functional at the earliest.

A two-member bench comprising PHC Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Syed M Attique Shah disposed of a petition filed by former MNA and a leader of Awami National Party, Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour, requesting the court to issue directives for making the 13 tubewells, which were part of a developmental scheme launched during previous government on his request in NA-31, functional.

The bench also directed the provincial government to complete work on and make functional another scheme of setting up of a rehydration and maternity centre in Kohati area of Peshawar.

The petitioner’s counsel, Tariq Mansoor, contended that work was completed on 13 tubewells but government was reluctant to make them functional due to political reasons.

Disposes of ex-MNA’s petition wanting to make tubewells and maternity centre functional

An additional advocate general, Syed Sikander Hayat Khan, a director of WSSP, Mohammad Ijaz, and an official of Pak PWD also appeared before the bench.

The WSSP director stated that one of the 13 tubewells wad already completed and made functional whereas work on the remaining was yet to be completed.

He said that electricity connections had to be provided to the tubewells whereas civil work on some of those was also incomplete.

He pointed out that five of the tubewells were constructed on private lands and the owners were demanding to be employed after which they would allow to make them functional.

He added that Pak PWD had also not completed construction work of some of the tubewells.

However, Tariq Mansoor disputed his claims and said that none of the tubewells was constructed on private land. He said that in fact those were constructed near graveyards on government property. He added that civil work on the tubewells was completed.

The bench directed that Pak PWD should provide final report to WSSP about completion of work on the tubewells after which those should be made functional.

Tariq Mansoor pointed out that a rehydration and maternity centre in Kohati was also non-functional.

The bench directed the communication and works department to complete work of the centre and hand it over to the relevant department so that the same should also be made functional at the earliest.

Published in Dawn, June 4th, 2021