Govt urged to restore levy on transportation of minerals

MANSEHRA: The Oghi Tehsil government asked provincial government to either restore levy on transportation of minerals or give the tehsil a share in royalty earned through mining industry in its jurisdiction.

"We condemn abolishing of levy which we had imposed on transportation of minerals. “We would launch a protest campaign if the government did not restore the levy or ensure our share in the revenue from mining," Raja Mohammad Bashir, Oghi tehsil nazim told a news conference here on Friday.

Tehsil nazim said that excavation and transportation of minerals from Oghi tehsil had dropped the underground water level and destroyed the road infrastructure. He said the government never paid even a single penny to Oghi Tehsil as royalty in revenue earned through mining industry. The nazim said that the budget deficit could be met and infrastructure damaged through transportation and excavations could also be restored if the government restored the levy.