KHAR, Nov 17: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Engineer Shaukatullah has said that work on Fata Medical College will be launched in the first week of December.

Addressing a tribal jirga at Khar here on Sunday, he said that construction work on 132KV grid station in the agency would also start next month which would ensure smooth electricity supply in the region.

He asked the concerned officials to accelerate work on the development schemes in the agency.

Mr Shaukatullah said that services and sacrifices of security forces and tribesmen in the war against terror were highly valuable and that the federal government was determined to provide basic and modern facilities to the tribal people.

He appreciated the role of tribal elders in eliminating militancy and restoring peace and normalcy in the agency, saying that the tribal people were the most loyal and peace loving citizens of the country, who had always supported the security forces for establishment of the government`s writ.

`The entire nation is proud of our tribesmen for their courage and sacrifices rendered for the country,` he added.

The governor urged the elders to step up their efforts in maintenance of peace in the agency as peace was essential for sustainable development and prosperity.

Governor Shaukatullah said that role of elders was also very important in elimination of disputes and crimes in the tribal areas and that the government was taking efforts to improve the tribal system.

A large number of elders, members of peace committees, MNA Shahabuddin Khan, Senator Hidayatullah Khan and senior officials and heads of line departments were in attendance.

Meanwhile, the local administration took extraordinary security measures across the agency to prevent any unpleasant incident during the governor`s visit to the region.

Hundreds of additional Levies and FC personnel were deployed at various areas.

Curfew was also imposed in several areas of Khar, while bazaars in Khar, Inayat Killi, Sadiq Abad and other areas remained closed.

Public transport was also suspended in various areas as a result the tribesmen faced hardships in moving around.