KHYBER: Speakers at a seminar here said that a persistent delay in issuance of licences for commercial use of explosives to mine lease holders was causing financial losses and mental stress to them.

Speaking on the occasion, Khyber Mine Owners Association president Asghar Khan Afridi alleged that administration was refusing to issue licences to them for commercial use of explosives during mining on the pretext of security concerns while security forces had de-notified most parts of the district back in 2014 and 2015.

He said that the continued ban on use of explosives for mining caused them monetary losses to the tune of millions of rupees while also rendering thousands of skilled miners jobless.

Mr Afridi said that the relevant department had completed the process of awarding lease for at least 176 minerals. Those, who had secured the lease, were desperately waiting for the ban to be lifted on issuance of licence for use of explosives that was banned prior to the start of military operation in Bara in September 2009.

Eng Arshad Ali, the association general secretary, said that more than 400,000 unemployed residents of Khyber would be provided with jobs if the leased out mines were made operational and explosive licences were issued to them as per their requirements.

Association secretary threatens to launch agitation against Khyber admin

He said that the tourism industry could also get a boost with the start of mining as most of the mine owners had plans to build roads at their own expense up to the mines that would help in exploring some new scenic places while the sectors of transport and hotel and restaurant would also flourish simultaneously.

He said that the stone crushing units in Takhta Bag locality of Jamrud were depositing Rs600,000 as tax to the national exchequer on daily basis whereas the leased out 176 mines could generate billions of rupees for the government on monthly basis.

Eng Arshad said that despite full adherence to all the official standard operating procedures (SOPs) by the lease holders, the acquisition of explosives licence was made extremely complicated for them by the district administration.

Bara Siyasi Ittehad president Shah Faisal Afridi said on the occasion that no such ban was in place in any other district of the province. He said stepmother’s treatment was meted out to lease holders in Khyber by denying them excavation of mines.

He threatened to launch agitation and mobilise all other stakeholders if the district administration failed to issue licences to them for controlled use of explosives during the excavation of different minerals.

Murad Saqi, another political activist, said that exploration of hidden mineral resources of Khyber was the need of the hour. “We make tall claims about the development of merged districts and provision of jobs to tribesmen but at the same time the government is strangulating interested local entrepreneurs by imposition of undesirable restrictions on them,” he added.

Published in Dawn, August 8th, 2023