PESHAWAR, Jan 7: The residents of the Tangi tehsil, Charsadda district, have called upon the NWFP government to take action against illegal exploration of asbestos and chromite deposits.

Speaking at a press conference here on Monday, an elder of Tangi tehsil, Capt (retd) Hamid Kamal Mohammadzai, said some influential people, including a former chief minister, were exploiting natural resources of the area and were involved in the illegal extraction of asbestos and chromite.

He said the Sarhad Developm-ent Authority had been informed about the illegal mining of the deposits, but the authority had not taken any action to stop the unlawful practice.