LARKANA, April 12: Protesters on Monday demanded recovery of nine-year-old Abdul Ghani Jakhiro who went missing from Ratodero taluka on April 4, and criticized the attitude of the taluka police towards the case.

They took out a protest procession, led by Bashir Khan Qureshi, the chairman of the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM), that started from the municipal office. The protesters encircled the office of the taluka police officer and chanted slogans against the police failure to recover the boy. The TPO met the protesters and sought tow days for the recovery of the boy.

The protesters then marched towards the main bus terminal and staged a sit-in there. Speaking on the occasion, JSQM chief Bashir Khan Qureshi, PPP city president Gul Hassan Ghanghro, Ratodero taluka council naib nazim Javed Arbani, Union Council-1 Nazim Ghulam Shabir Soomro and others lashed out at the lukewarm attitude of the police.

They apprehended that the boy had been kidnapped. They also observed a token hunger strike outside the local press club and threatened to resume the protest after two days till the safe recovery of the boy.

IRRIGATION: The employees of the irrigation department blocked VIP Road on Monday in protest against the non-payment of 350 lower staff's salaries. The employees who have not been paid salaries since December 2003 did not report for duty. They met the district coordination officer who assured them of assistance.

HESCO: The residents of Rasoolabad held a protest demonstration on Monday against power failures in their area. They alleged that Hesco had deliberately been suspending power to the area for the past 10 days on the pretext of non-payment of bills. They urged the Hesco management to immediately restore power supply.

INSANITATION: The residents of Haidri mohalla staged a demonstration against the poor sanitation in their area. Most streets in the locality are submerged with drain water as gutters are overflowing.

The protesters said they were facing difficulties in getting home due to the submerged streets. They alleged that the municipal staff had adopted an indifferent attitude towards their problems. The poor sanitary conditions, they added, were causing various diseases among people.