BAJAUR: Residents of Mena Sulman Khail area of Lowi Mamund tehsil on Monday announced to boycott the ongoing five-day anti-polio campaign to press for their four-point demands.

They made the decision during a meeting in the area which attended scores of people from different walks of life. The participants of the meeting, which later turned into a symbolic protest, pointed out that Mena Sulman Khail (village council 45) was among the several areas of Lowi Mamund tehsil affected by the recent anti-militant operation.

However, they alleged that the area’s displaced residents had yet to receive the compensation packages approved by the provincial government for internally displaced persons some two months ago.

They stated that unnecessary delay in provision of compensation packages, which included a one-time cash assistance of Rs50,000 per family, Rs15,000 as ration allowance, and Rs25,000 for transport charges, had badly disappointed the area’s residents, who had completed all the required procedures for receiving the assistance.

Moreover, participants of the meeting said that the government had yet to award compensation packages to the families of those killed and wounded in the recent operation in their area.

They said that launching an assessment survey of their damages and affected houses due to the recent operation was also a pressing issue, so the affected people should start rebuilding their houses before the winter sets in.

The members of the meeting said that restoration of cellular service and mobile network in their area was among their four-point charter of demands. They said that they were not against the anti-polio campaign, as the drive was crucial in keeping their children safe from polio disease forever.

However, they noted that they had decided to boycott the ongoing anti-polio campaign in order to push for their demands to be addressed.

Neither the district administration nor the local health department has shown any reaction to the boycott till filing of this report.

Published in Dawn, October 14th, 2025