Daily Times

HANGU: The third phase of the return process of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to their native areas in the upper parts of Orakzai Agency kicked-off here on Wednesday.

The Political Administration of Orakzai Agency on Wednesday warned to impose a Rs10 million fine on the peace committee if any act of violence happened in their respective areas.

The Sector Commander North-West Orakzai, Brigadier Imran Haider Sherazi, and Political Agent Muhammad Zubair Khan, were present on the occasion and launched the third phase of the repatriation. They saw off the returning families. The tribespeople of Rabiakhel, Daradar Mamazai, Khaniki Sheikhan and Mamuzai tribes would be sent back to ther native areas in the ongoing process.

Around 30,000 families would be returned to their native areas in the upper parts of Orakzai Agency by the end of 2016, said Brigadier Imran Haider. He said that 17,000 families had already been returned to their native settlements in the upper parts of Orakzai.

He said that peace had been restored to Orazkai as a result of the huge sacrifices rendered by the law enforcement agencies and the tribesmen. He said that the government was aware of scale of destruction and damages caused to houses, other properties and school and health facilities. “Houses would be rebuilt, schools and health services would be revived and other infrastructure would be rehabilitated,” he added. He urged the returning tribesmen to extend their full support to the political administration and security forces to maintain peace in their native areas.

Political Agent Muhammad Zubair directed the members of the peace committees not to allow militants and anti-social elements to enter their native areas. He said that the administration would impose a Rs10 million fine on the concerned peace committee if any untoward incident occurred in their area.

He said the government planned billions of rupees uplift projects for Orakzai and development work on such projects would be launched shortly.

The two officials visited the registration point and reviewed the arrangements.

US lauds Pakistan on opening of vital road: The American Embassy congratulates the people of Pakistan, the FATA Secretariat and the Frontier Works Organisation on the opening of the Bannu-Miran Shah-Ghulam Khan road inaugurated on Wednesday by the Pakistani Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif. The United States is proud to have partnered with the Pakistani government to restore key trade routes between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The Bannu-Miran Shah-Ghulam Khan Road was constructed at a cost of 8.7 billion rupees of funding from the United States government through the US Agency for International Development (USAID). The 82-kilometre road, which is one of the four major cross-border trade routes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, facilitates access from Bannu to Miran Shah and onwards to Ghulam Khan.