MANSEHRA: An eight kilometers road built by the people of a remote village in Balakot tehsil on their own was formally opened to traffic on Saturday.

They insisted they took the Rs2.5 million initiative after the local lawmakers abandoned the project as the relevant department sought Rs40 million from him for it.

Ghanool village council member Perveen Akhtar inaugurated the BeerKhanian Danna Road.

She said it was for the first time that such a big scheme had been successfully executed by local community after collecting money from itsmembers.

`I appreciate the families, which don`t have sufficient food to feed minor members but contributed money for this road project,` she said.

Social worker Abdul Rehman, who contributed Rs600,000 for the road`s construction, said the villagers met local lawmakers and relevant officials many times for the road`s construction but to no avail as the latter insisted Rs40 million was needed which they didn`t have.

He said the community successfully executed the project at a cost of just Rs2.5 million for which the authorities demanded Rs 40 million.

The community members later took out a rally shouting slogans against local lawmakers over non-provision of funds for the project despite repeated promises.

BUTCHER SENT TO JAIL: A local court in Balakot on Saturday sent a butcher to jail on judicial remand.

Mohammad Shaukat faces the charge of first slaughtering a baby calf and then sell-ing its meat as goat`s.

Mohammad Yasir the SHO of Gari Habibullah police claimed the butcher was arrested on the people`s complaints and that he had admitted to the illegal activity during investigation.

SOLDIER BURIED: An army soldier, who was killed in the shelling by Indian forces on the Line of Control, was buried here on Saturday.

Sepoy Khyial Mohammad was killed in Giyar Sector on the LoC in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

His body was taken to native village in Giar Schain area in Siren valley of Mansehra district, where he was laid to rest.

The people from all walks for life, family members and army officials attended the funeral prayers followed by a gun salute parade by an armed contingent.

A military officer laid a wreath on the grave of Khyial Mohammad on behalf of the army chief.

GOVT FLAYED: Kandar Hassanzai tehsil nazim Shahzad Shah on Saturday criticised the PTI government for cheating the people in the name of creation of new tehsils in Hazara division.

`Our ANP government had declared Torghar a district but the PTI government is merely announcing the creation of new tehsils, which is eyewash,` he told an ANP worker convention in Polosa Hassanzai area.

The nazim asked if the government lacked funds for existing tehsils and districts, so how it would arrange funds for the new ones.

He said while announcing the status of a settled district for Kala Dhaka, former Chief Minister Ameer Haider Hoti had announced over Rs5 billion funds for it and thousands ofjobsforits residents.

The nazim said the PTI government was reluctant to release the funds announced in the budget for the district.

He said he was hopeful that the ANP would sweep the 2018 general elections in Hazara as the local residents were sick of the PTPs politics.