BAJAUR: The residents of Arang area in Utmankhel tehsil here on Monday staged a protest demonstration against delay in completion of a road project.

The protesters blocked Bajaur-Munda road to traffic for a while. People from different areas attended the demonstration held at Mian Shahjehan Chowk near Khar town.

The demonstrators, carrying a banner inscribed with slogans against the eight-year suspension of work on Arang road, reached the venue of protest. They staged a sit-in blocked the main road.

They said that construction of about eight kilometres Batai-Arang road was initiated in November 2018 and was supposed to complete within four months. However, they said that work on the scheme was stopped a week after its inauguration by former MNA Guldad Khan.

The protesters said that prolonged delay in resuming work on the project was a matter of great concern for them as the road was meant to connect dozens of small villages located in the mountains to rest of the district.

JI’s Sardar Khan, ANP’s Zahoor Ahmad, PTI’s Waqas Khan addressed the demonstration and expressed deep anger over unnecessary delay in completion of the project.

They recalled that former lawmaker Guldad Khan along with former provincial minister Anwarzeb Khan during a visit to the area in 2021 had promised that work on the scheme would be resumed within weeks as funds had been released for it by the provincial government.

They criticised MPAs Anwarzeb Khan and Ajmal Khan of not taking interest in completion of the project. They said that MPA Anwarzeb Khan, who re-inaugurated the project in May 2024, had pledged to complete the scheme within five months.

However, they regretted that work on the scheme was yet to be resumed. They demanded of provincial government to resume work on the scheme without further delay to ensure its completion at the earliest.

The demonstrators called off their protest after holding successful talks with a team of district administration officials, led by Khar subdivision assistant commissioner Amirullah Khan Wazir.

Published in Dawn, May 5th, 2026