Protest held against delay in construction work

Rafiullah Mandokhail

ZHOB: A large number of residents of villages along Mir Ali Khail highway staged a protest demonstration by setting tyers ablaze and blocked road for several hours against the delay in construction work on Zhob-Mir Ali Khail highway.

The protest was led by tribal elder Malik Ehsan-ul-Haq Mandokhail and backed by notables Haji Lal Gul Mandokhail, Malik Saeedullah Mandokhail, Malik Abdullah Mandokhail, Malik Abdul Jabbar Mandokhail, Muhammad Juma Mandokhail and Fazal Khaliq Mandokhail.

The protesters in chilly weather gathered on Killi Wiyala road and chanted slogans against the government and authorities concerned for not paying heed and turning a blind eye to the miseries of the masses.

Addressing the protesters, Malik Ehsan-ul-Haq Mandokhail, Chairman Balochistan Awami Tehreek Fazal Amin Mandokhail, Rahim Wiyalawal and Ghafoor Watanyar said that thousands of people have no option but to travel through the under-construction road on daily basis, adding their hue and cry bore no fruit.

“People have been deprived of their due rights. They met the concerned authorities several times for the completion of highway’s construction work, but to no avail”, adding the delay on part of the project contractors and the government amounted to criminal negligence as the people were facing hardships. They lamented.

“The government had initially promised to construct western route of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor to develop the less privileged areas, but it has diverted all the allied development projects to the eastern route of CPEC,” they said.

The protesters said that the government had initiated Mir Ali Khail highway project between Balochistan and Khyber Pashtoonkhwa that links Zhob with Tank in 2005. However, the construction companies have been failed to complete the project despite passing over a decade. They demanded of the government to immediately release funds for the project and speed-up the construction work.