LOWER DIR: In order to resolve various issues of women, the district administration on Thursday arranged the first open kutcheri (open court) for women in Timergara with under-training assistant commissioner Ms Shawana Haleem in the chair.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf MPA Dr Sumera Shams was the chief guest at the event which was attended by scores of women from different parts of the district and female representatives of various government departments.

Ms Shawana informed the participants that the district administration with the collaboration of socialwelfare department had arranged the open court for women in order to properly address the issues faced by them. She said more such open courts would also be arranged in future.

Speaking on the occasion, majority of women demanded posting of female staff in the local passport of fice as well as female class-IV staf fers in the of fices of education department and girls` colleges.

The women participants also demanded recruitment of LHWs on merit and regularisation of their services, provision of equipment and medicines in labour room of the Timergara DHQ hospital, reportingcounters for women in all police stations, ensuring women`s job quota in various departments, service structure for nurses, sufficient female staff in all girls` colleges, establishment of separate female section in Nadra Timergara office, construction of waiting rooms and washrooms in all government offices, female staff for ultrasound in the THQ hospitals, establishment of a separate women police station in Timergara, reservation of quota in medical colleges for female students of Lower Dir, etc.

The speakers complained that majority of posts of women in the education department had beenoccupie d by m ale of ficers who should be immediately replaced. Similarly, they demanded appointment of female class-IV employees at all girls` schools and colleges.

Ms Shawana asked deputy DHO Dr Irshad Rughani to probe into the allegation of the participants about merit violation in recruitment of LHWs.

Dr Sumera Shams said that the present government wanted to provide all facilities to women and take steps for their welfare. She said the issues highlighted by the women had been noted and she would raise voice for them in the provincial assembly.

Correspondent