MANSEHRA: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan has admitted that price hike has hit hard the poor segments of society, but promised he was going to divert a part of the Rs150 billion development programme to provide some relief to people from inflation.

He was speaking at a public gathering in Baffa here on Saturday.

The chief minister, who performed the groundbreaking of the Rs3 billion Siren Right Bank Canal project and Rs2 billion Nawaz Abad Mundi Mali Road project, also announced a medical college for the Mansehra district.

“I laud Prime Minister Imran Khan for announcing the country’s largest relief package of Rs135 billion, and I will follow the suit and divert money earmarked in the budget under the development head to give some relief to the inflation-hit people,” Mr Mahmood said.

He said his government was also going to launch an education card scheme for the youngsters to help them attain higher education without being worried about financial constraints.

Mahmood Khan also announced the upgradation of Baffa-Pakhal tehsil to a subdivision and said federal railways minister Azam Khan Swati should extend railway track from Havalian to Mansehra.

He also announced two degree colleges, upgradation of dozens of primary, middle and high schools on the demand of the federal parliamentary secretary MNA Salah Mohammad Khan.

Earlier, Salah Mohammad presented a list of demands, which was mostly approved by the chief minister.

Speaking on this occasion, federal communications minister Murad Saeed said Karakoram Highway would be blacktopped from Mansehra to Shinkiari.

“Prime Minister Imran Khan has for the first time spent Rs66 billion on tourism promotion which will attract foreign tourists to the country,” he said.

Federal ministers Umar Ayub, Azam Khan Swati and MPA Ahmad Hussain Shah also spoke on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, November 7th, 2021