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       SWAT: Jamaat-i-Islami’s Malakand division emir and former provincial minister Inayatullah Khan has accused the PTI government of halting over Rs42 billion worth of ongoing development projects in the region and freezing the funds.

       He expressed these views during a news conference at the Swat Press Club on Friday.

       JI naib emir and former MPA Syed Bakhtiar Mannai, general secretary Mohammad Haleem Bacha, former MPA Mohammad Amin, JI Swat emir Hamidul Haq and other local leaders were also present.

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       Inayatullah said that the provincial government’s move had deprived the 10 million people of the region of their rights.

       “The PTI government cancelled development projects worth over Rs42 billion that were approved for Swat, Buner, Shangla, Dir, Malakand, Chitral and Bajaur districts. The freezing of funds and halting of the projects is an insult to the mandate of the local people, which is condemnable,” he said.

       He mentioned that the people of Malakand division had given their mandate to PTI three times, but the party had done injustice to them. “The role of PTI ministers and assembly members, elected on the people’s votes, is extremely disappointing.”

       Inayatullah said that for the first time in the history of the province, any government used batons against local government representatives and subjected them to violence. “Those who organised the sit-ins in Islamabad were now depriving the local government representatives of their democratic right,” he regretted.

       He made it clear that if the government did not release funds and restore the already approved projects in Malakand, the Jamaat would launch a protest movement.

       ROADS CLEARED OF SNOW: The road leading to Kalam valley here was cleared after heavy overnight snowfall on Thursday, enabling tourists to visit the area without any hindrance.

       Meanwhile, a large number of tourists from various parts of the country began flocking to the valley to experience the live snowfall.

       Saeedur Rehman, spokesman for the Upper Swat Development Authority (USDA), said clearance of roads to Kalam and other tourist destinations had been completed. He added heavy machinery was deployed to ensure the roads remained clear.

       He said USDA director general Adnan Abrar and Swat deputy commissioner Shehzad Mahboob had been supervising the road clearance operation for past two days.

       “Earlier, two oil tankers going to Kalam met accidents due to slippery conditions, disrupting traffic. However, after three hours of continuous efforts, both oil tankers were safely removed, and the traffic was restored,” he explained.

       Due to the large influx of tourist vehicles, USDA spokesman advised tourists to use snow chains on their vehicles to avoid any unfortunate incident.

       Published in Dawn, January 4th, 2025