LOWER DIR: Awami National Party central spokesman and former senator Zahid Khan has said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa finance department has agreed to release Rs12.5 million for the improvement and extension of the Balambat irrigation channel.

Talking to reporters at his residence here on Sunday, he said the amount was promised after he had contacted the quarters concerned. He said the irrigation department had also released water in the channel for irrigation purposes.

He said the government had stopped the supply of water to farmers due to the extension and improvement of the channel. He said the farmers had suffered for two years as the government had not released enough funds for the project.

ROAD ACCIDENTS: Five people, including a woman, were injured in different road accidents here on Sunday, residents and rescue officials said.

They said three youths were injured when a motorcycle and a car collided head-on in Chakdara. The injured were shifted to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, Chakdara.

Similarly, a woman and a young man were injured when a motorcycle was hit by a car on Sar Lara Road in Samarbagh. The injured were shifted to the THQ Hospital, Samarbagh.

Meanwhile, a boy identified as Hassan, 14, a resident of Teerona Khadagzai area, drowned in the River Swat when he was taking a bath.

Rescue 1122 divers reached the spot and started a search operation to retrieve the body.

The rescuers also continued searching for the bodies of two women, who had drowned in the Panjkora River in Tarai area the other day.

HIDES COLLECTION: The Al-Khidmat Foundation’s Lower Dir president Hafeezullah Khaksar has said 1,100 volunteers took part in hides’ collection from different parts of the district during the Eid days.

Talking to journalists, he said the AKF also sacrificed 165 big and small animals and distributed meat among 5,000 deserving families. He said meat was also distributed among Afghan refugees, inmates of jail and the Darul Aman.

The AKF leader said a record number of hides were collected by the foundation this year due to people’s trust and cooperation.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2023