KOHAT: Hundreds of workers of Kohat Water and Sanitation Services Company (WSSC) went on a strike on Friday against non-payment of their three-month salary, suspending water supply to domestic as well as commercial consumers.

Speaking to the protesters, WSSC employees’ union president Mohammad Sohail said their parent department, the tehsil municipal administration, was responsible for payment of salaries to 460 employees. He said the TMA employees were sent on deputation to WSSC in 2016.

He lamented that two organisations with the same mandate existed at the same time. He said everything was going on smoothly till 2016 when WSSC was launched, and workers were transferred to it. He termed WSSC a white elephant whose officers drew millions of rupees every month in wages. He called for winding up the organisation as it had completely lost its need for existence.

Mr Sohail suggested workers should be averted back to TMA.

When contacted, WSSC deputy general manager Tahir Afif told Dawn that under the agreement the TMA had to pay salaries to workers.

He called on tehsil municipal officer Mohammad Shoeb to arrange for at least two months’ salary, enabling the poor workers to at least pay for kitchen expenses, school fees and electricity bills.

Mr Shoeb said he had spoken to the local council board and officials of WSSC, and both had agreed to arrange two-month outstanding salary of workers amounting to Rs190 million.

GANG BUSTED: The Jarma police busted a gang of land grabbers on Friday, who were occupying costly land in Muslimabad area along the old Indus Highway.

SHO Fazal Mohammad said that five-member gang was taking the property of one Jan Ali at gunpoint when one of his family members informed the police about it.

He said that he along with a team raided the place and arrested five accused and also recovered illegal weapons from their possession.

He identified the gang members as Sain Shah, Shahid Khan, Sohail Ahmed, Mohammad Alam and Zain Badshah, belonging to Sumari area. He said a case was registered against them.

The police also seized two 12-bore repeaters, a pistol and dozens of cartridges.

Published in Dawn, February 17th, 2024