Timber smuggling bid through oil tanker foiled in Shangla

SHANGLA: The forest department in Shangla has foiled a bid to smuggling a big quantity of cedar wood from northern parts to Peshawar through an oil tanker and arrested an accused.

Divisional Forest Officer, Shangla, Amjad Ali told reporters here on Friday that on special directives the staff of Karora forest checkpost foiled an attempt of precious timber smuggling through an oil tanker.

He said the timber was being smuggled from Kohistan to Peshawar in a specially-designed oil tanker which had managed to evade many checkposts. However, as soon as it entered the Malakand forest region vigilant staff of Alpuri forest division nabbed the timber smuggler.

The DFO said the driver, Zahid Khan of Upper Dir district, had been arrested, adding the accused had been slapped with a fine of Rs200,000, beside confiscation of the timber worth millions of rupees. He also appreciated the forest guards for foiling the timber smuggling.

TEHSIL STATUS: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, Malakand division leader Engr Abdul Tawab has claimed that the provincial government has given tehsil status to Chakesar as a notification in this regard was issued the other day.

He told reporters in Bisham on Friday that the people’s longstanding demand had finally been met by the government.

“The chief minister had made a commitment with the people some six months ago that Chakesar would be made tehsil,” he added.

Mr Tawab said it was first step towards ensuring uplift of Chakesar and thanked PTI MPAs Shaukat Yousafzai and Abdul Munim Khan for playing role in giving status of tehsil to Chakesar.

ROAD ACCIDENT: Five people were critically injured when a car fell into a ravine in Koz area of Alpuri. Officials at the Alpuri police station told reporters that the car going from Alpuri to Karora area met the accident as the driver was over-speeding.

Police said the locals retrieved the injured from the ravine and took them to the district headquarters hospital.

The injured hailed from Dehrai and Koz areas.

Published in Dawn, November 18th, 2017