KOHAT, July 1: The government has issued advisory to all the executive district officers to remain in their offices during the working hours and also be cautious at home due to an imminent threat to their lives in Kohat district, Dawn has learnt reliably.

They have been strictly asked not to use official vehicles while travelling on the Indus Highway passing through Darra Adamkhel. The officers in Peshawar have also been directed to avoid travelling to Kohat through Darra Adamkhel. They have been advised to take the relatively safe Nizampur route in case of emergency.

It is worth mentioning that for the last one month no senior official of the frontier region of Kohat including district coordination officer, assistant political agent and others had visited the area despite announcement of ceasefire by militants.

An official requesting anonymity told Dawn that the step had been taken in light of the reports of intelligence agencies. The advisory said that any officer who left his office during duty hours to attend a ceremony or visit a bank and shop would be responsible for the consequences himself.

The government planned to carry out operation against militants on the outskirts of Kohat particularly in Gumbat, Togh Bala, Ghurra Zai, Tanda Dam, Kaghazai, Sumari, Barh, Bilitang and parts of the frontier region close to the city. But for the time being it had been postponed.

It is pertinent to mention that many people living in those areas got threatening letters from militants. Some journalists also received threats. They were asked to take dictations from militants instead of taking comments of the government officials while reporting the activities of Taliban carried out in the area.

There are three to four groups of militants operating in Kohat with those belonging to Tehrik-i-Taliban Darra Adamkhel having an upper hand. Their commanders pass on instructions from their headquarters established in Ghiljo area of Orakzai Agency. Now the militants from Khyber Agency were also being pushed towards Orakzai Agency which could become a battleground of the rival forces.

The commanders had told their men that they would return to Darra Adamkhel and Kohat soon for more actions against the government if it continued with policy of aggression in the tribal areas. They had asked their followers to be ready for any order which could be issued for attack at any time, sources said.