KOHAT: The district administration has registered a case against an innuential contractor and his son for instigating traders to resist demolition of illegally built vegetable market and for abusing the officials during an anti-encroachment drive.

Police said that when assistant commissioner Ali Asghar and chief municipal officer Mohammad Shoeb arrived at the illegal vegetable market on the site of the old jail with bulldozers to clear the government land of encroachments, the contractor, Saifullah Afridi, and his son, Mohibullah Afridi, tried to stop them from doing so. He also hurled abuses at the officials.

The police said that Mr Shoeb later lodged FIR in the city police station against the contractor and his son for hindering the government action and harassing the labourers.

However, the police were yet to arrest the contractorandhis son.

The police said the contractor had beenreceiving money from the traders and handcart owners for the last 15 years, sharing the amount with some TMA officials. They added that not a single penny was deposited in the exchequer.

OUTLAWS HELD: In a crackdown against criminals on Tuesday the police arrested 12 outlaws wanted in murder and kidnapping for ransom cases and seized weapons and drugs from them.

The operation was carried out in Shakardarra, Ustarzai, Khadizai, Mohammadzai, KDA, Kamardhand, Darsha Khel and Merozai areas on the outskirts of the city.

The proclaime d of fenders who were rounded up from the houses of their facilitators were identified as Altaf Shah, Mohammad Zabiullah, Zardad Khan, Pyao Khan, Mazhar Abbas, Shah Hussain, Zahid Khan, Rafiullah, Nawab Khan, Adnan, Fazal e Rabbi and Sartaj Hussain.

The arms recovered from them included four Kalashnikovs, three kalakovs, eight shotguns, seven rifles, 12 pistols and 10 kilogramsof hashish. The police also rounded up 59 suspects.

WATER SHORTAGE: Water shortage and excessive loadshedding in the posh Kotal town here has troubled the residents.

Water shortage is more acute in sectors 1 4, 7, 8 and 9 where residents had to run from pillar to post to get water tankers to fill their underground tanks.

Project director of the Kohat Development Authority, Najeeb Afridi, told Dawn on Tuesday that water shortage was due to loadshedding. He said he had requested the Pesco to ensure smooth power supply to get all the water tanks constructed in different sectors filled, but to no avail.

However, Najeeb Afridi said whenever residents faced water shortage they were provided the commodity through water tankers free of cost.

`We have two water tankers which work in two shifts round the clock to provide water to residents who cannot pump water to the tanks atop their houses from underground tanks due to power outages.