KOHAT: A road connecting Bilitang on the Rawalpindi highway with Sayyab area here has started developing cracks only six months after its construction at a cost of Rs9 million.

The road from Bilitang to the graveyard was first inaugurated by former MNA Shehryar Afridi after it was constructed by the communication and works department at a cost of Rs4.3 million.

But, it soon developed cracks and the repair work and construction of the remaining portion of the road was carried out by former MPA Malik Amjid Afridi at a cost of Rs4.6 million.

Social activist Amadul Hassan of Sayyab area demanded an inquiry into the poor quality of material used in the construction of the road.

JIRGA: A jirga held in Dabori area of Orakzai tribal district on Tuesday warned against launching any operation against militants in the region, complaining they were yet to be compensated for the damage done to their properties in the earlier operations conducted against terrorists a decade ago.

The elders asked the deputy commissioner and commandant FC to instead launch operations against landmines that were still lying in the jungles and mountains.

The participants demanded a Shuhada package for a junk collector, Jalil Orakzai, who died after a bomb in a gunny bag he collected from a mountain, went off the other day.

An elder, Najeebur Rehman regretted that the tribesmen had not been paid for their damaged houses and shops. He said thousands of lives had been lost during the militancy and counter-militancy operations in the region a decade ago.

TAILORS INCREASE RATES: The tailors have raised the rates of gents suit to Rs1,400 from Rs800 last year, and for children suit to Rs900 from Rs700, the residents complained on Monday.

They said they were already suffering from spiraling inflation, and couldn’t afford paying such high rates to tailors. They appealed to the district administration to check the unbridled increase in tailoring rates.

President of tailors association Aurangzeb Khan told Dawn that the price of a roll of stuffing material (Bukram), which is used to give shape to collars and cuffs, had gone up to Rs116,000 from Rs34,000 last year.

Similarly, he said the cost of buttons and cotton yarn had also registered a big increase.

Another tailor, Tahir Mehmood said each shop had five to six workers who charged Rs400 per suit. Besides, he said tailors had to pay exorbitant electricity rates, and had also to use generators amid long power outages.

He said tailors had to work round-the-clock to meet the Eid orders.

Published in Dawn, April 12th, 2023