Repatriation: All NWA IDPs back home, says minister

Qadir Baloch says focus now on providing basic amenities

ISLAMABAD: Minister of States and Frontier Regions (Safron) Lt-Gen (retd) Abdul Qadir Baloch on Friday said the repatriation of 130,000 families of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to North Waziristan tribal area has been completed.

“I am glad that all IDPs have reached their hometown with full dignity and respect,” said Baloch while giving details of the process.

He said the process was started on February 25, 2014. “These people had to move from North Waziristan Agency when Operation Zarb-e-Azb started in June 2014.”



The majority of the IDPs belong to the Mehsud tribe. They were living in different towns and cities where they rented homes or were staying with their relatives and extended families in DI Khan, Tank, Peshawar and Kohat.

With the completion of the repatriation process, all IDPs from Bajaur, Kurrum, Mohmand, Orakzai and South Waziristan tribal areas have returned to their hometowns. It was a bit challenging for Pakistan to provide all basic necessities of lives to the IDPs.

Baloch said: “Now the focus of our efforts has been shifted to providing basic amenities like clean drinking water, drainage, healthcare and education.”



In this regard, he added, many international donor agencies had been helping Pakistan.

Moreover, he said completing communication projects in the affected area would also be accorded top priority. “The prime minister has already allocated Rs500 million for the purpose,” he said.