Bahrain-Kalam Road

Kalam elders blast KP govt for not building bridges

By Mahboob Ali Yousafzai

MINGORA: The elders of Kalam valley have accused the provincial government of creating hurdles to building bridges on the main Bahrain-Kalam Road.

Addressing a press conference here at Swat Press Club here, the local elders and members of Pakhtunkhwa Amn Jirga, including Ghulam Ali, Rahmat Din Siddiqui, Zakir Khan Advocate, Malik Muhammad Zeb Khan and others, said that the dilapidated bridges were hurdles to the smooth communication and promotion of tourism in the scenic Kalam valley.

They added that the construction work on Bahrain Kalam road had been completed in 2018, but the government had failed to spend the remaining allotted amount of Rs180 million to build the remaining 13 bridges on the main road.

“Due to the non-construction of bridges, tourists along with locals often get stuck in traffic jams for hours, besides accidents on the road,” said one of the elders.

He added that if the government failed to start construction work on the bridges, they would start agitation in front of Parliament and would lodge an FIR against Federal Minister for Communication and Postal Services Murad Saeed.

The elders alleged that the provincial government had also halted construction work on Kalam-Utroar Road and Kalam Matiltan Road.

“The locals have sacrificed their 1700 acre land for the construction of six dams, but the government has not fulfilled the pledge of providing employment to the locals in these projects. We will use every option like agitation in Peshawar, Islamabad and Swat. Chief Justice of Pakistan is requested to take suo motu notice and compel the state institution to honour their promises,” said another elder. The locals also chanted slogans against the government and arranged a demonstration rally from Nishat Chowk, Mingora, to Swat Press Club.