KOH AT: It is the responsibility of the oil and gas companies to provide basic facilities and improve the standard oflife ofthe people of Kohat division, said Senator Abdul Nabi Bangash while chairing a meeting of a sub-committee of the Senate standing committee on oil and gas production at Circuit House here on Wednesday.

He regretted that despite availability of huge natural resources people of Shakardarra town of Kohat district were still without drinking water.

He said that the people of Shakardarra had been facing drinking water shortage thoughRs150 million had already been allocated for the project by provincial law minister Imtiaz Shahid Qureshi several months ago.

He asked the Oil and Gas Development Company to provide water to the residents through tankers service on daily basis till permanent solution of the problem.

He said that he would himself monitor the provision of water to the residents of Shakardarra.

He also asked OGDC to construct road from Ahmadi Banda to Maun Banda in Thall tehsil of Hangu, and the Hungarian oil company to release Rs20 million for the establishment of burns centre at the Kohat divisional headquarters hospital.

He said that the OGDC and MOL company should provide Rs2.5 million as grant to Kohat Press Club.

The meeting was attended by chairman of the Kohat district development advisory committeeMPA Ziaullah Bangash, chairman of the DDAC Hangu MPA Shah Faisal, Imtiaz Qureshi, deputy commissioner Hangu, Naeem Sadozai, Shah Al Hussaini, regional administrator of OGDC for Kohat and Punjab Mushfiq Paracha and other relevant officials.

Senator Bangash said that the after lifting of ban on gas supply the companies should immediately start work on its supply in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He said that next meetings of the sub-committee would be held in Hangu and Karak districts for discussing impediments in the development schemes.

He said that direct benefit of the naturalresources should be passed on to the people by resolving their basic problems and providing health and education facilities to them.

HASHISH SEIZED: The police seized 55 kilogrammes of fine quality hashish being smuggled from tribal areas to down country andarrested five alleged carriers, including a woman, here on Wednesday.

District police office, Kohat, Saleem Marwat told a press conference at his office here that the smugglers would be dealt with an iron hand to discourage the illegal business.

He said that police stopped a double cabin pick-up (B-1031) at the city checkpost and recovered 55 kgs of hashish from its secret cavities.

He said that a woman carrier Maryam hailing from Landi Kotal, driver Havaldar Khan, Altaf Khan and Mohammad Kareem were arrested on the spot.

In another such case, Ustarzai police stopped a vehicle coming from Orakzai Agency on Hangu road and recovered eight kilogrammes of locally produced hashish from it.

One alleged smuggler Mohib Ali belonging to Orakzai Agency was also arrested. The police have registered boththe cases.