Action sought against contractor for embezzling water supply funds

CHITRAL: A group of people from Morder village of Mulkhow on Wednesday demanded suspension of Assistant Commissioner of Mastuj Mr Inayat Ullah and launching of an inquiry against him for allegedly preparing a report in favour of a contractor who was accused of using substandard material in the construction of a water supply scheme in the village.
Speaking at a press conference in Chitral, Mir Ayub Khan, Saad Rumi, Agha Jan, Ahmed Khan, Jamsawar Khan, Masoon Khan, Hyder Ali, Mehrab Khan and others said that on the public complaints the deputy commissioner  of Chitral had constituted a commission headed by the assistant commissioner to carry out an inquiry.

But the AC did not even bother to visit the site and ascertain the facts.
They said the public health department had on paper claimed to have spent Rs7.5 million on the stablishment of the water supply scheme to Morder but its construction was substandard.

The project failed to supply even a drop of water to the residents because the pipe passing at a height of 10,600 feet was laid on the surface of the land instead of laying it at least three feet underground. Besides, there was no chamber set up at the source of the water.

When the residents met the deputy commissioner and lodged a complaint, he constituted the commission under the head of the AC. Sub-engineer Hafiz Rafiullah and sub-engineer Asif of the finance and planning department were members of the commission.

The head and members of the commission visited the village but instead of inspecting the project site went back. When the residents insisted that the commission should visit the project site and inspect it, the AC misbehaved with the, they claimed.

They demanded that the government should probe the embezzlement of the Rs7.5 million in the water supply project and take action against the contractor Mehboob Azam and the officials concerned. –Bashir Husain Azad

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