KOHAT, Aug 25: The assistant coordination officer (ACO) on Wednesday suspended the in charge veterinary doctor of the city's slaughterhouse where sick cattle were being slaughtered and officially stamped for public consumption by a cleaner.

ACO Naeem Sadozai, accompanied by a police party, raided the slaughterhouse in Spring Valley and found Dr. Shehwar absent from duty, while a cleaner was performing 'duty' in his place.

Mr. Sadozai also ordered inquiry against the absenting veterinary doctor. During the raid, he found that sick animals were being slaughtered in an extremely filthy place, while stray dogs were roaming inside the slaughterhouse.

Dr. Shehwar is performing duties at the slaughterhouse for the last 15 years and has survived several inquiries and complaints by some sane butchers and people.

It had been alleged that Dr. Shehwar would allow butchers, who paid him fixed monthly, to slaughter weak and sick animals, but none of the administrators in these years took action against him. Remaining absent from duty and 'favouring' a few of city's butchers had been a constant complaint against Dr. Shehwar for years.

The ACO also visited the district offices complex at Kohat Development Authority and found absent without leave 11 employees of the finance department, two of health, three of excise and taxation, and one of communication and works department. He asked the heads of these departments to take strict action against the absent staff.

Three boys drown: Three boys of a family drowned in a pond in Borakka area, while a woman committed suicide in Kohat late Tuesday night.

A Rescue 15 official told Dawn that Syed Bilal, 11, and Kamran Shah, 13, sons of Syed Bilal Shah, jumped into a pond near their house and got stuck in the mud. Their cousin, Syed Yaseen Shah, also went into the pond to pull them out, but he also drowned. Bodies of the three boys were retrieved from the pond after efforts of several hours.

Later, they were buried in the village's graveyard amid moving scenes.

Meanwhile, Junglekhel police said that one Tawakkal Khan, an Afghan refugee, told them that his 19-year-old wife committed suicide by taking poison in Ghamkol refugee camp and died on way to hospital. Mr. Khan claimed that his wife was upset with behaviour of her in-laws living in the same house.

Police have registered a case and started investigations.

Compensation assured: Kohat division commissioner Khalid Khan Umerzai on Wednesday expressed his dissatisfaction over the slow pace of flood damage assessment. However, he assured the affected people that the administration would work hard to ensure release of compensation amount to them before Eidul Fitr .

Addressing a meeting in his office, Mr. Umerzai directed the district revenue officers to complete the lists of affected families and speed up data collection of damage in Kohat, Hangu and Karak districts, so that a report could be sent to the government for release of compensation to the flood-hit people.

The district coordination officers of Kohat and Hangu also briefed the commissioner about the measures they had taken so far for the well-being of flood-stricken people.