HARIPUR: The workers of Heavy Electrical Complex at Hattar Industrial Estate here on Monday staged a token protest outside the office of deputy commissioner and sought his intervention in disbursement of their outstanding salaries.

Led by labour leader Tahir Amin, the workers staged a token sit-in for a few minutes. They also presented an application to the deputy commissioner, stating that they had been without salary for the last four months.

They said that despite repeated protests, neither the ministry of industries nor the factory administration was ready to address their problem. They said that they were unable to run their kitchen during Ramazan.

The workers said that Eid was round the corner but their children would be without new clothes due to indifferent attitude of federal government and factory administration.

They threatened to launch a series of protests if the administration failed to release their salaries before Eid. Tehsil nazim Samiullah Khan also joined the workers in solidarity and met Deputy Commissioner Aon Haider and requested him to play his role in disbursement of salaries to the workers.

The deputy commissioner has called the factory administration and deputy director of labour department to his office today (Tuesday) to discuss the matter with them.

TIMBER: The Khanpur police and forest department during a joint operation seized timber worth hundreds of thousands of rupees and impounded a truck here on Monday.

Police said that on an intelligence report, police and forest officials stopped a truck bearing registration number JZ-3528 coming from Makhniyal side near Choee checkpost.

They said that during the search of the truck, police and forest officials recovered 21 logs measuring 52 square feet of pinewood from it.

The driver, however, made his escape good. Police impounded the truck and confiscated the timber that was illegally cut in the forest area of upper Khanpur and was being transported to Punjab.

Published in Dawn, April 18th, 2023