PARACHINAR, Jan 17: The army started helicopter service between Peshawar and Parachinar on Monday owing to grim security situation in Kurram Agency. The Army Aviation will ferry two choppers from Peshawar to Parachinar every week to facilitate about half million people, who could not travel by road because of security reasons.

The residents of Kurram Agency are facing hardships after government restricted their cross border movement. They had been travelling to Peshawar via Kabul since Thall-Parachinar Road was closed to traffic.

Commandant Kurram Militia Col Touseef Akhtar told journalists that military choppers would carry civilians. He said that the service would ease problems of the civilians and assured that army would take more steps to facilitate people of Kurram valley.

He said that action against militants was underway in central and lower tehsils of Kurram and security forces had cleared 80 per cent area. He said that peace would be restored in the area soon.

The main road, linking Kurram with rest of the country, has been closed to traffic after attack on a convoy transporting goods to Parachinar on Jan 5. Militants looted goods and burnt 22 trucks. Security forces were escorting loaded trucks.

Meanwhile, unidentified armed men hijacked a truck carrying poultry to Parachinar in lower Kurram on Sunday.

Also, a tribal jirga headed by former federal minister Malik Waris Khan Afridi left for Peshawar on Monday after holding talks with the local elders in Parachinar. The jirga arrived here to discuss peace process with the elders of the Turi tribe.

Sources said that elders asked the jirga to ensure implementation of Murree agreement signed by all parties to the conflict.