SHANGLA: Relatives shot dead a man hailing from Peshawar on the Karakoram Highway in Bisham city here on Friday morning, the police said.

The police arrested the two suspected killers, also hailing from the provincial capital, when they were trying to flee on motorcycles after committing the crime.

Bisham city police station SHO Syed Khurshid Ali told Dawn that the deceased had migrated to Bisham from Peshawar due to a property dispute with his relatives, and was living in a rented house. He said the accused attacked the man when he was walking along the KKH, killing him instantly. His body was shifted to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital, Bisham, for autopsy, he added.

SHO Ali said following the incident, the accused attempted to flee, but the police intercepted and arrested them in Kunshi area.

He said an FIR was lodged against the suspected killers under section 302 of Pakistan Penal Code.

He said the initial information suggested the motive behind the murder was a property dispute. He said the accused chased the deceased all the way from Peshawar to Bisham.

WORKSHOP ON CLIMATE CHANGE: Speakers at a workshop held here the other day emphasised the need for interdisciplinary collaboration, training at the local level and the use of modern technology to improve early warning systems in different communities living in the northern region of Pakistan to help minimise the damage caused by natural disasters.

The workshop titled ‘strengthening early warning systems’ was organised by Lasoona – a relief and development organisation – under the project ‘building resistance through food and nutrition improvement in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Balochistan’.

The project has the technical support of Welthungerhilfe (WHH), a German organisation, and the financial support of Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

According to organisers, the objective of the workshop was to enhance disaster response capabilities and strengthen early warning systems to protect the lives and minimise damage.

Ismail Khan, disaster risk management specialist at Provincial Disaster Management Authority, was the keynote speaker at the event.

The speakers noted that the need for early warning systems was being acutely felt, especially in the hilly rural areas like Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in view of climatic hazards like floods, droughts and heat waves.

The participants were given tips on how to identify and improve the deficiencies in the existing early warning systems.

Published in Dawn, January 4th, 2025