PESHAWAR, Sept 19: The NWFP government is facing difficulties in acquiring land for a zoo in Peshawar as people are refusing to sell their farmland for such a project, officials said.

They said that sites had been identified on Charsadda road but people had refused to provide agriculture land for the purpose.

The provincial government had planned to set up the zoo in the outskirts of the provincial capital and had earmarked Rs50 million for the scheme in the annual development programme for the year 2006-07.

The officials said that the NWFP Wildlife Department had been tasked to establish the zoo and acquire about 800 kanal land for the scheme on Charsadda road in Peshawar.

“Authorities have identified few sites for the construction of zoo but local farming communities are reluctant to provide land”, said an official.

He said the provincial government had released Rs19 million for acquisition of land, adding that if people did not provide land voluntarily the government was likely to invoke section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act which would entitle the government to purchase land on fixed prices from the people.

Under the proposed plan, officials said, the city district government would also construct recreational park adjacent to the proposed zoo.

City district Nazim Ghulam Ali had committed to obtain funds from the federal government for the park, said an official.