PESHAWAR, Feb 10: Members of the thousands of families belonging to four Khyber Agency tribes that earlier missed registration are likely to get the internally displaced persons status, official sources told Dawn on Friday.

A decision to this effect, according to an official, had come after affected tribesmen from Khyber Agency took up the matter with the Federally Administered Tribal Areas' authorities during the recent meetings between the two sides.

“The political authorities have asked the Provincial Disaster Management Authority for making arrangements to grant the IDP status to unregistered displaced families from Khyber Agency, extending them relief at the Jalozai camp,” a PDMA senior official said on condition of anonymity.

The official said around 3,600 families were expected to be registered as IDPs by the authority.

He said the decision would benefit the Khyber Agency families, which moved out of their villages for personal security concerns and missed to get registered as IDPs at the Jalozai camp.

The official said the ongoing crackdown on Lashkar-i-Islam militants launched in 2009 had resulted in mass exodus with tribal people moving to Peshawar.

A PDMA official said over 9,000 families had been registered and accommodated at the Jalozai camp. He said of the Khyber Agency's registered families, around 6,500 belonging to Shaluber tribe had been registered as IDPs since January 21, 2012.The official said the decision to grant IDP status to unregistered displaced families would be applicable to the affected families belonging to four tribes, including Malikdinkhel, Sipoh, Qamberkhel and Akkakhel.

“The affected tribesmen from these tribes have been pressing the political administration of Khyber Agency to register them as IDPs like thousands of their clansmen registered and living at the Jalozai camp,” said an official.

Officials said tribal families could not have been registered earlier who were not willing to stay in the camp or those who were staying elsewhere after leaving the Agency.

Under a recent decision enforced since January 31, 2012, the displaced families registered at the Jalozai camp would be allowed to stay elsewhere if they wished to.