SHANGLA: Work on the widening and blacktopping of the long-awaited eight-kilometre Kabalgram-Kamach Road started here on Saturday after over two decades of struggle by local residents and sufferings they endured due to its bad condition.

Funds for the road project have been provided by the World Bank. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz`s district youth coordinator Tahir Khan, who is nephew of party`s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa president Amir Muqan; former union council nazim Nazir Ahmad and others opened work on the project during a ceremony.

On the occasion, they said the bad condition ofthe road had stressed the people of Martung tehsil out.

`Construction of the road has been a longstanding demand of the local people, and we have fulfilled our commitment made with them prior to the general elections. Work on other roads in the region would also be executed in next few months,` Tahir Khan claimed.

He said the Kabalgram-Kamach Roadwould be blacktopped and widened at a cost of Rs690 million.

He claimed that Amir Muqam had got approved projects worth Rs16 billion for Shangla. He said some projects were being funded by the Asian Development Bank.

Former UC nazim Nazir Ahmad said work Board-Puran, Makhozi, Chakesar and Karora-Ajmeer roads would also begin soon.

He said a local jirga would monitor the quality of work on the Kabalgram-Kamach Road.

CRACKDOWN: The Bisham tehsil administration on Saturday booked several shopkeepers for violating the government-fixed rates of commodities.

The consumers complained about artificial price hike by traders in Bisham Bazaar ahead of Eidul Azha.

On the directives of the deputy commissioner, the officials launched a crackdown on profiteers. A team led by the area tehsildar found traders violating the official price list, and ordered registration of cases against them.

The tehsildar also fined on traders for not displaying price lists at their shops. He warned them to abide by the official rates of food and non-food items, or face action.