LG reps urge govt to facilitate Tirah TDPs

BARA: The representatives of the local government on Tuesday asked the authorities to provide facilities to the temporally displaced persons (TDPs) who returned to their native areas in lower parts of Tirah valley in Khyber district.

Speaking at a press conference, Ikhtiar Badshah, Javed Afridi, Rahmanullah, Imran Khan and others said the displaced people from the Sipah tribe who recently returned to Sandana , Nangurosa, Speendrand, Narebaba, Sandapal Darra and other areas were facing a host of problems.

They said the IDPs of Sipah had been living near the border of Afghanistan during militancy.

“Dozens of families from the Sipah tribe had even migrated to Afghanistan when security forces launched a military operation in the upper parts of Bara,” they said. They added the displaced persons later returned to the country the Fata Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) did not register them.

The LG representatives said the government should give them the status of the TDPs.

“Due to militancy and military operations, the homes of the local people and other infrastructure were destroyed,” Ikhtiar Badshah said. He asked the government to provide facilities to the displaced people.

He said the TPDs were sent to their areas empty-handed while their homes, guesthouses and businesses were destroyed. He maintained the TDPs were facing shortage of clean drinking water besides lack of education and health facilities in their native areas.

“The government is providing 8kg flour bag, 2kg ghee, 2kg rice, 2kg pulses and one tent to each family but it is not sufficient,” he complained. He said the government should conduct a survey to assess the damage caused to homes and compensate local people for losses.

The LG representatives said the TPDs would stage a protest outside the provincial assembly building after Eid if their demands remained unfulfilled.