Nigahbans demand payment of 14 months’ stuck-up salaries

BOONI: Hundreds of people hired in phases by the forest and wildlife departments as Nigahbans of saplings planted under the previous KP government’s Billion Tree Tsunami Afforestation Project (BTTAP) are still waiting for the payment of their 14 months’ salaries.

In June this year, these Nigahbans observed a hunger strike in Booni demanding payment of their salaries which had been stopped about nine months back. Later, the authorities concerned assured the protesters that their salaries would be cleared soon after a monitoring team would submit a report about their work.

The monitoring team a few weeks later submitted its report to the authorities but so far the salaries of the Nigahbans have not been paid.

Talking to ChitralToday, scores of Nigahbans said that since the protest in Booni the forest department has been utilizing the Nighbans at different sites without paying them their salaries fixed at Rs15,000.

“Now it has been learnt that the KP government has released the amount to clear the outstanding salaries of the Nigahbans but the authorities in Chitral are not ready to pay the dues of about 14 months. If our all stuck-up salaries are not paid to us, we will again start our protest to bring the issue under the notice of the higher authorities,” they added.