LOWER DIR: The Accountant General’s Office has launched a province-wide recovery drive against government employees in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa who, either themselves or through their family members, received financial assistance under the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), official sources said.

Officials said the action followed verification of beneficiary data through government service records and the database of the National Database and Registration Authority, which revealed that a large number of serving public employees or their households had benefitted from the poverty alleviation scheme meant for low-income and vulnerable families.

Sources in the District Account Office told Dawn that thousands of employees across the province had been identified, adding that recoveries amounting to nearly Rs5 billion were expected to be deposited into the national exchequer.

In Lower Dir, around 1,600 government employees have reportedly been identified, from whom approximately Rs270 million will be recovered in installments through salary deductions.

Officials said in this regard a significant number of employees belong to the Levies force and police. Meanwhile, several Levies personnel from Lower Dir confirmed on Thursday that deductions had been made from their February salaries. However, expressing resentment they claimed that the financial assistance had been received by their spouses after due verification and inclusion in the programme through NADRA records.

They said they were considering jointly challenging the government’s decision in court and seeking a stay order against the recoveries.

TIMBER SEIZED: The Forest Department seized a large quantity of illegally stored timber during a joint operation in the Jandol area of Lower Dir District, officials said on Thursday.

Acting on a tip-off, officials of the Forest Department carried out a raid on an abandoned house in the Kambat locality of Jandol, where a significant quantity of illegally cut wooden sleepers was recovered.

The operation was conducted under the supervision of District Forest Officer Syed Shabbir Jan and jointly participated in by Sub-Divisional Forest Officer Mohammad Farzad, Assistant Commissioner Samar Bagh Mohammad Ayaz, along with police personnel.

Officials said the valuable timber, which had been illegally stored, was taken into official custody and handed over to the relevant authorities, while legal proceedings had been initiated against those involved.

Published in Dawn, February 27th, 2026