KHYBER: A book, showcasing the achievements of 50 people from Tirah and Bara, was launched at a simple ceremony at Bara Press Club here on Tuesday.

Written in Urdu by retired Subedar Amanullah Aman Afridi, the book highlighted the services of these 50 selected individuals for local community during the last several decades.

Addressing the book launching ceremony, the author said that he selected those 50 personalities from Tirah and Bara on the basis of their `immense` services for local society while largely remaining unrecognised as locals had little knowledge about their achievements.

He said that it took him more than two years to collect accurate and reliable information about the personalities he had chosen with the assistance of both his close friends and social media.

`The response on social media was immense and inspired me a lot to pen down the book as social media users in thousands of numbers not only appreciated the initiative but also provided valuable information to me about the selected personalities,` he stated.Mr Afrifi said that his book titled `Wadi-i-Tirah (Bara) Kay Darakhshan Sitaray` was a testimony to the glorious past of the prominent personalities, who rendered personal sacrifices for Bara and earned a good name for the entire Khyber.

Prominent among the selected personalities are retired Air Marshal Asghar Khan, Advocate Latif Afridi, Subedar Yaqoob Khan (late) Sitara-iJurrat, a World War 1 veteran Subedar Meer Mast Khan, World War H veterans Subedar Meerdast Khan and Subedar Major Yar Badshah, philanthropist Haji Younas, veteran political worker Bazaar Gul Afridi and others.

He wrote about Air Marshal Asghar Khan that though he was not born in Bara nor he lived in Khyber, his family belonged to Malakdinkhel tribe. He said that residents of Bara and Tirah had little information about him.

Khiyal Mat Shah Afridi, a close friend of author and a journalist by profession, said that the book was a quality historical document, which would serve as a link and bond between older and younger generations.

He said that the younger generation of Bara in particular was ignorant about the achievements of their elders and the book would provide them with an insight of their illustrious lives.