Survey of destroyed houses in Bara sought

BARA: Speakers at a consultation session here on Sunday demanded the government to release compensation to tribesmen whose houses had been damaged in militancy and also resume survey of the destroyed houses in Bara tehsil of the Khyber district.

The event was organized by Afridi Relief Committee and Maroof Karwan on Sunday. Member Provincial Assembly (MPA) Shafiq Afridi, Pakistan People's Party leader Sher Shah Afridi, Jamiat Ulema-i -Islam (Fazl) ameer Shamsuddin Afridi, PTI’s Abdul Ghani, Awami National Party Bara president Shireen Khan and others spoke at the event.

The speakers said the government was not interested in solving the tribal people’s problems. They said the tribal people and government infrastructures had been destroyed in militancy but the government did not provide compensation to the affectees yet. The speakers added that the government had done a survey of the destroyed houses several years ago but the compensation cheques were not issued.

“We want the government to increase the compensation of the destroyed houses from Rs0.4 million to Rs1 million forthwith,” Sher Shah said. He said the tribal children had been already deprived of the basic right of education as the government had not completed the reconstruction of the destroyed schools in Bara yet.

Later, MPA Shafiq Afridi said the government had already increased the survey forms for the affectees of Bara tehsil. He said the Khyber administration had prepared 1100 cheques for the destroyed houses of Tirah and Bara, adding the cheques would be handed over to the affected people soon. Shafiq Afridi said the government would also resume the survey of the destroyed houses within three months.