Swat elders want expressway built along river

MINGORA: The elders belonging to different villages on Tuesday staged a protest rally here against the Swat Expressway phase-II, saying that their precious land was being acquired without seeking their consent for the project.

The elders from Kabal, Matta, Thana, Mingora, and Barikot villages said that the expressway could be built on the river bank, but their fertile lands were being acquired without taking their consent. A large tract of their land had earlier been acquired for the universities, bypass roads, cantonments and other projects, they said and pointed out that the provincial government and its departments as well as the consultants of the project have yet to take the landowners into confidence. “The employees of the prospective contractors are busy conducting their own surveys without consulting village elders or landowners whose land will be acquired for the Expressway,” said one of the elders.

The elders said that they were not against the development projects and expressway, as it would bring prosperity to the region. The expressway could be built on the bank of the river Swat, they said. If the Expressway is built along the river bank, it will not only provide charming landscape to the visitors, but would also provide protection to the farming land from the flood and river erosion,” said Sultan-e- Room, a local leader. “We will continue our struggle and will record our protest at every forum. We request Chief Minister Mahmood Khan and Federal Minister Murad Saeed to have mercy on the locals and relocate the expressway,” said Fatehullah Khan, a local land owner, adding that Swat valley had limited fertile land, and mostly the valley was comprised of mountains and river; the proposed project would destroy their lands and fruit orchards.

Abdul Wakil Khan, a local farmer, added that the residents of Swat valley had already limited land for living and cultivation purposes owing to the rapid increase in population and the proposed project would add to their misery.