PESHAWAR, Oct 19: Awami National Party (ANP) has asked the federal government to compensate the NWFP for undergoing pressure as a result of heavy influx of new Afghan refugees in the wake of humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.

The ANP took note of the government’s move of setting up more refugee camps in the NWFP and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) instead of accommodating the new refugees in Sindh and Punjab where, it observed, there existed great support for Afghanistan and Islam.

In a Press release issued here on Friday, ANP’s secretary information Haji Mohammed Adeel said that trade and business in the NWFP was already under stress, export had come to a halt, a large number of industrial units were closed and protest demonstrations and rallies had pushed the traders and shopkeepers to the wall.

The ANP leader said that the NWFP was being forced to face the brunt of humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and the Centre was not giving the province its due share under the net profits of hydel power. Besides, he said, the increasing debt was also undermining the provincial financial position, making it difficult for the provincial government to carry out its routine functions smoothly.

The party demanded of the federal government that at a time when Pakistan had managed to get economic sanctions lifted, rescheduling of foreign loans’ repayment was being done and economic assistance in the shape of loans and aid was being extended, the NWFP should also be given greater amount for its development and to offset the impact of the presence of millions of Afghan refugees on its soil.