MANSEHRA, May 22: Traders of the quake-hit town of Balakot have threatened to launch a protest movement if they are not paid the compensation pledged by the government.

“The prime minister and the chairman of the Earthquake Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Authority had promised to pay us compensation for the losses we suffered in the October 8, 2005 earthquake, but not a single penny has been paid to us,” their representatives said at a press conference in Balakot on Tuesday.

Balakot All-Traders Association president Mohammad Asif and other office-bearers said the earthquake had destroyed their businesses and goods worth billions of rupees.

They said the prime minister during a meeting in Islamabad had assured the association that the affected people would soon get compensation, but the government had not even surveyed the affected areas.