PESHAWAR: Minerals Resources Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has demanded immediate lifting of ban on explosives used in mining, as the measure has adversely affected mining activities and the livelihood of thousands of people associated with the sector.
Addressing a news conference at Peshawar Press Club on Monday, the association’s president Afsar Mohammad Khan, accompanied by general secretary Syed Abdul Rauf Shah and mining leaseholders from different parts of the province, said the government should review the explosives policy in consultation with mining leaseholders and introduce workable standard operating procedures without disrupting mining activities and employment.
He stressed that the mining and minerals department is responsible for developing mineral resources and should not be treated merely as a revenue-generating department.
He urged the provincial government to amend the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minerals Act, 2017, through an empowered committee comprising representatives of leaseholders, mineworkers and other genuine stakeholders.
Say ban adversely affects livelihood of thousands
He also demanded dissolution of the Mineral Exploration and Facilitation Authority (MEFA), alleging that its members did not represent genuine stakeholders or have sufficient links with the mining sector.
Mr Khan urged the provincial government to establish a Minerals Development Bank in KP and ensure that royalties generated from mining were utilised for the development of the mining sector and communities associated with it.
He demanded that loading and transportation of minerals already extracted from mines be allowed, arguing that such activities had no connection with the use of explosives.
The association’s president also called for regulated mining in forests and protected areas under appropriate environmental and safety safeguards. He alleged that MEFA had imposed a ban on all forms of mining in ‘guzara’ forests despite the Minerals Act, 2017 allowing mining there, and demanded immediate withdrawal of what he termed an unlawful policy.
Mr Khan criticised large-scale mining operations, saying powerful investors were taking control of mineral resources in areas, including Dir, Chitral and Malakand. He called for providing financial assistance, machinery and small mining areas to groups of local workers on easy terms.
He also demanded promotion of local investment and value addition so that mineral processing could be carried out within KP, creating employment and generating greater economic benefits for the province. He also called for allocation of small areas to local workers for placer-gold mining.
Published in Dawn, September 1st, 2026
