KHYBER: The elders of Sipah tribe in upper Bara have threatened to block the main road leading to Tirah if their grievances are not addressed by authorities in due course of time.

In a jirga held in Sandana area on Sunday, the elders regretted that most of the people of upper Bara, who had returned to their homes some four years ago, were still living in damaged houses.

Addressing the jirga, tribal elders Haji Kitab Khan, Haji Waak Khan, Haji Gulab and Turab Ali said that more than 700 families, who had returned to their homes, were still living in damaged houses as the government did not initiated any damage assessment survey in any part of upper Bara.

They said that schools, health units, irrigation channels, bridges and roads were still in need of proper repair. They said that school going children were compelled to sit in the open and patients went to either Bara or Peshawar for treatment owing to lack of educational and health facilities in the region.

The elders said that majority of the residents of Spin Drand, Sandana, Sheikhmali Baba, Dray Wandi, Kotki, Nangrosa and Kandaw Jumaat relied on agriculture but they were faced with water shortage as the entire irrigation system was dysfunctional due to over a decade long absence of locals owing to militancy.

They said that they were also faced with difficulties to fetch drinking water from the Bara River as there was no proper water supply scheme in the entire region.

The Sipah elders insisted that they could not repair or rebuild their houses. They said that they would lose their right to get monetary compensation for their damaged houses if any repair was carried out prior to the start of damage assessment survey of their houses.

They said that all their pleas and requests for resolution of their demands fell on deaf ears as they had been reminding their grievances to relevant authorities since their return to their homes four years ago.

Published in Dawn, February 3rd, 2025