MANSEHRA: Traffic on the Oghi-Darband Road remained suspended for several hours on Wednesday after large cracks ran up a key bridge in the Dogai area here.
The vehicles later forded the stream under the bridge.
The residents claimed that the downpour-induced flash floods caused the bridge to crack, closing the key road to vehicles moving between Oghi tehsil and the neighbouring Torghar district.
The traffic suspension lasted several hours, resident Anisur Rehman Tanoli told reporters.
He said the bridge in the Dogai area linked Mansehra district with the neighbouring Torghar district via Oghi.
Vehicles ford stream as repair begins
The resident said authorities had begun the bridge’s repair but it would take time to complete.
“Now after the closure of the bridge by the administration, vehicles are making the way to their destinations through the stream to the discomfort of all those on board,” he said.
Another resident, Aqib Khan, complained that many vehicles got stuck in the stream, while some motorcyclists and pedestrians suffered minor injuries after slipping in the water.
He demanded speedy work on the bridge fearing more rains will add to the misery of road users.
HELP SOUGHT: District police officer Zahoor Babar Afridi on Wednesday urged clerics to help the police control crimes, especially the sale of narcotics, here.
“I want you to help us get the people’s support and cooperation for an effective clampdown on outlaws and drug peddlers,” Mr Afridi told a group of religious scholars and prayer leaders during a meeting in his office here.
The DPO said people held ulema in high esteem, so the latter should influence the former into the “social boycott” of those dealing in narcotics and committing crimes.
He said as the drug dealers targeted youth, intervention by prayer leaders and other clerics, especially through sermons for Friday prayer, would help the police effectively crack down on those criminals.
Meanwhile, the people from different walks of life met here and announced the holding of rallies against what they called the deteriorating law and order situation in the district.
The speakers, including JUI-F representative Mufti Nasir Mehmood, trader leader Saeed Tanoli and member of the District Youth Assembly Shabbir Hussain Shah, complained that the addiction of the ice drug among local youth, including students, was on the rise.
They said drugs reached students on campus without let or hindrance, while over a dozen people, mostly youngsters, had lost their lives due to drug abuse in the last one week and so.
The participants agreed to mobilise people on the issue before staging a rally next week.
Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2023