MANSEHRA: The special police force deployed at the under-construction Balakot hydropower project has been utilising high-tech surveillance drones to ensure security of Chinese nationals.

“This energy project is being executed in the mountainous parts of Balakot. To ensure foolproof security of Chinese engineers and workers, we have also been using high-tech drones to monitor the sites and ensure that no unauthorised individuals approach the working areas or residential camps and working sites,” District Police Officer (DPO) Shafiullah Khan Gandapur told journalists during his visit to the dam on Thursday.

Deputy Commissioner Khalid Iqbal and Mr Gandapur visited work sites, residential camps and under-construction tunnels of the 300-megawatt Balakot hydropower project and met with Chinese officials.

They also held a meeting with army officers to discuss various measures to ensure foolproof security of Chinese engineers and workers.

Mr Gandapur said that during the visit, Chinese nationals were assured that security agencies were utilising all available resources to ensure their safety so that they could work with peace of mind. He said that safety of foreign nationals was their top priority.

Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation has launched this energy project, which is being built on the Kunhar River in Kaghan Valley downstream with $550 million in loans from Asian Development Bank and other financing agencies.

TMA: Traders in Oghi on Thursday demanded of tehsil municipal administration (TMA) to launch an anti-encroachment drive.

“The structures encroaching on the right-of-way and handcarts placed on both sides of the roads in the city and its suburbs have severely affected business activities. However, TMA has yet to take action against them,” Mohammad Adil Awan, vice president of Awan-i-Tajarat, a representative body of traders in Oghi, told journalists.

Accompanied by a group of traders, he said that due to encroachments, pedestrians could not move freely in local bazaars and traffic remained congested most of the time.

“If people coming for shopping cannot move freely because of encroachments, how can our businesses flourish and how can we manage our domestic and overhead expenses” Mr Awan questioned.

He urged TMA to designate separate parking areas for tri-wheelers, which frequently blocked traffic in local bazaars and on main roads.

Published in Dawn, February 14th, 2025