GUJRANWALA, March 2: Three children of a labourer were killed when the roof of a house collapsed due to rain in Rakh Kikranwali here on Sunday.

Reports said the family was sitting in the room when the roof caved in. Haseeb (5), Muneeb (3) and one-year-old Azeem died on the spot while their mother, Balqees Bibi, and grandmother Inayat Bibi sustained injuries. The injured were admitted to the DHQ Hospital in critical condition.

Meanwhile, provincial minister Chaudhry Iqbal visited the hospital to inquire after the health of the two injured women.

UNHYGIENIC CONDITIONS: The Markazi Anjuman Tajran and other organizations of traders have expressed resentment over the unhygienic conditions in bazaars and streets of the city and demanded of the city tehsil council and Wasa to adopt solid steps for removing heaps of garbage and draining out water and sewage from commercial centres on a priority basis.

Speaking at a news conference here on Sunday, Markazi Anjuman Tajran president Dr Mahmood Ahmad and others expressed their resentment over the defective sewerage system of the city and said that they had been annually paying Rs300 million in taxes to various government functionaries including the city tehsil council and Wasa but were still being deprived of basic civic facilities.

They said that their business was being affected due to unhygienic conditions as customers could not reach their shops and trade centres. They deplored that citizens were being compelled to clean the bazaars and streets by hiring sanitation staff on their own.

SHOT DEAD: A man was shot dead by his rivals in Barkat Colony here on Sunday.

According to the police report, the deceased, Shahnaz, was on his way home from market when the accused, Shahid and Bilal, opened fire on him following an exchange of hot words. He died on the spot. The grudge was said to be due to the involvement of a brother of the deceased, Fayyaz, in a murder case.