KOHAT: The members of the Wapda hydroelectric union, Kohat chapter, set up a hunger strike camp here on Tuesday to protest against temporary appointments in the Peshawar Electric Supply Company for the purpose of dues recovery.

Before the hunger strike camp, the workers took out a rally from the Pesco office in Happy Valley and marched to the rescue office.

Speaking on the occasion, the union’s divisional chairman Younis Shah, chairman rural Mohammad Daud, vice-chairman Farman Khattak and divisional secretary Syed Abbas Raza criticised the government for making temporary appointments and not entitling such employees to any compensation in case of death or injury during duty.

On the occasion, Younis Shah said there were 1,250 sanctioned posts of Pesco in Kohat against which only 280 people were working. The posts had been lying vacant for several years, he added.

BHU CONSTRUCTION: Deputy commissioner Roshan Mehsud has ordered expediting construction work on the lone health facility in the oil and gas-rich Syab area to rid the people of going to Kohat district headquarters for seeking treatment.

Speaking at an open kutcheri on Tuesday, he said with the establishment of the basic health unit the local people would get a health facility at their doorstep and be relieved of taking a long journey to hospitals in the district headquarters.

He inspected the construction work on the BHU after holding the forum and promised the elders of resolving their problems regarding provision of gas, ending electricity loadshedding, construction of health and education facilities, fixing the drainage system, and paving streets and roads.

The deputy commissioner said the purpose of holding the open kutcheri was to know about the problems facing the people and ensure their timely solution.

He ordered the officials of relevant departments to submit reports on the progress of work on various projects to him within a week.

Published in Dawn, October 13th, 2021