Protesters demand revival of LPG plants project
CHITRAL: Activists of different political parties, including PML-N and Pakistan People’s Party, held a protest rally against the government for abandoning the establishment of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) plants at three places in Chitral.
The project was planned by the previous Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government but shelved by the PTI government recently.
Led by Qazi Waqar and others, the protesters chanted slogans against the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government as the protest march turned into a public meeting in front of the local press club.
The speakers condemned the move and said provision of LPG through the plants at cheaper rate was the best solution to check deforestation in the district.
They said the previous PML-N government had acquired land and bought equipment and commissioning of the project was planned when the PTI government took over and stopped further work on it.
The protesters set a one-month deadline to the government for starting work on the project.
REVENUE STAFF: Patwaris and other revenue staff announced to go on pen-down strike from Feb 8 for acceptance of their demands, including regularisation of their services.
The patwaris and qanungos here on Saturday held a meeting with their vice-president Mehmood Khan in the chair. They claimed that the government was using delaying tactics in implementation of the orders of high court to regularise their services.
They added that as a pressure tactic by the government, the president of their association Qadir Aman was fired from service and many others were suspended on one pretext or the other.
They demanded regularisation of their services and reinstatement of their colleagues.
Published in Dawn, February 7th, 2021
Do not agree a bit with this demand. LNG is a source of energy. We have potential for producing energy through hydel projects from own water. Why should we demand imported LNG instead which is not feasible any way. The days of subsidies a nd ‘free lunch’ are ending. We should spend the money in setting up more and more hydel power stations and provide clean and indigenous electricity at cheap rate like in Gilgit/Baltistan. The government should do due diligence before initiating any project in future.
This LNG is real need of Chitral to meet the increasing household energy need in the district partcilarly fuelwood requirement of the people for cooking and space hesting during prlong winter months. Further this is the only solution to protect the meagre natural forests in the fragile mountain watersheds and conservation of unique and some of the threatened biodiversity of Chitral. PTI govt must set aside politics , here the matter is not only to protect fragile mountain environment of Chitral for the sustenance of the mountain communities rather to reduce its negative consequences in the downstream as well.
Without protecting natural forests of Chitral, the billion trees tsunami project of PTI govt will prove to be futile exercise in at least KPK Province. All the PTI leadership in Chitral is requested to take this issue with political high ups of PTI and restore the initiative taken by our Ex MNA Shahzada Iftikharuddin. It will create better and positive image of PTI in Chitral, not to politicize such important project of common interest of whole Chitral region. Thanks.