KASUR: The bridge over Rajbah canal near Amreek Singh village in Mustafabad has been in a dilapidated condition for the last couple of years.

The bridge, between Amreek Singh and Sarhali Kalan villages, has put the lives of motorists and livestock at risk. It connects about a dozen of villages near the Indian border with other villages as well as Mustafabad Town. These villages included Bhoja, Patharpur, Raj Kalan, Jeevan Singh, Pathanwala and Katlohi.

According to farmers, there have been several incidents of motorists and animals falling in the canal due to poor condition of the bridge. They said they had to travel an extra 10 kilometres while avoiding the bridge to reach their destinations. Repeated complaints to the irrigation department as well as local politicians had fallen on deaf ears.

Another bridge over Rajbah near Vehgal village also irked the villagers as they claimed they had to cover an unpaved path of about 4km in the absence of a proper bridge over the canal. The Kakranwala Bridge provided a link between villages of Vehgal, Panvi and Chhatian.

Residents of Vehgal said a large portion of the bridge had fallen into Rajbah while the remaining was fast eroding. They demanded the authorities look into the matter, resolve the longstanding issue and build new bridges.

BODY: Kot Radha Kishan police on Sunday recovered the body of a seven-year-old boy from fields near Toll Tax Chowk.

On the identification of some farmers, police found the body of Falak Sher, 7, from fields near the boy’s house, police claimed. They sent the body to Kot Radha Kishan THQ Hospital for autopsy.

According to police, a medical report would reveal whether the minor was raped or not.

Published in Dawn, March 5th, 2018