Bajaur-Peshawar road blocked against taxes on marble mining in Mohmand

GHALLANAI: The transporters and labourers working in the marble quarries in Mohmand tribal district on Tuesday threatened to stage protest demonstration outside the provincial assembly building in Peshawar if the government did not withdraw taxes and restore power supply.

The protesters, including transporters and mining workers, earlier staged sit-in on the Bajaur-Peshawar road and blocked it for vehicular traffic for some time.

However, Member National Assembly Sajid Khan Mohmand and officials of district administration visited the sit-in camp and convinced the protesters that their issue would be taken up with the chief minister soon.

The protesters later ended their sit-in and opened the road for traffic.

Speaking on the occasion, office-bearers of the Mining Association, Marble Transporters Union, Hayat Khan, Jan Sher, Sawal Khan, Malik Sultan, Malik Ayaz Khan Safi and others said that government levied heavy taxes on the marble mining that rendered thousands of workers and transporters jobless.

They said that the provincial Mines and Minerals Department jacked up taxes from Rs3,000 to 15,000, which they termed a cruelty with poor labourers and transporters.

They said that marble quarries in Mohmand tribal district were remained closed from the past 10 days and thousands of workers lost employment due to heavy taxes on mining.

The speakers asked Chief Minister Mahmood Khan and the district administration to take notice of the issue or else they would not hesitate to stage a protest demonstration outside the provincial assembly in Peshawar.