KHAR: The residents of remote Charmang valley have flayed the political administration and the lawmakers for ignoring the area in development schemes and threatened to launch a protest drive if uplift works were not initiated immediately.

They made the threat during a jirga held in Tangi locality, the main town of the region, which was attended by elders and notables belonging to different tribes.

The participants expressed concern over absence of basic amenities like health, education, roads and drinking water.

They pointed out that the Charmang valley straddled the Pak-Afghan border, and the locals had always supported the administration in the fight against militants, but unfortunately they had been deprived of even basic facilities of life.

They said the residents had long been facing water shortage as there was no water supply scheme in the area, forcing them to fetch the commodity from far-flung areas.

Theynoted thattheyhadbroughttheissue ofshortage of water into the notice of officials of local administration and the legislators many times, but to no avail.

They said they were promised to have solar-powered water supply schemes in the region, but the promise was not translated into action.

They appealed to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor to order immediate launch of uplif t works in the neglecte d valley.