K-P mulls bifurcating Hazara Division

Abaseen Division will comprise seven districts

PESHAWAR:

The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) government has decided to establish another division by dividing the large Hazara Division into two smaller divisions but the move has created serious differences on the question of where to locate divisional headquarters.

Reliable sources told The Express Tribune that four districts including Upper and Lower Kohistan, Kolai Palas and Shangla have agreed to declare Bisham their divisional headquarters but district Batagram is opposing it which has suggested that Batagram should be the new headquarters. There are a total seven districts in the new division.

“Kohistan and Shangla districts have warned that if Bisham is not declared district headquarters then they would opt for the status quo,” said an official.

The Chief Minister Mamood Khan has already approved the creation of a new and eighth division which would be known as Abaseen Division and Kohistan Upper, Kohistan Lower, Kolai Palas, Shangla, Batagram, newly created district Alai and Torghar will be part of it.

“There will be seven districts in the new division and four districts have already expressed their willingness on Bisham as the location for divisional headquarters. A fifth district Torghar is also willing to accept it but Batagram is opposing it,” said the official.

“Batagram will be split into two districts Alai and Bagatram and it wants Batagram to be the place of divisional headquarters instead. The representatives of the three districts of old Kohistan have warned that they would like to be part of Hazara Division if Bisham is not declared the divisional headquarters. The headquarters of Hazara Division is Abbotabad,” he informed, adding that the representatives of the Shangla district have made it clear that in case Bisham is not made the divisional headquarters then they would like to remain part of Malakand Division, further complicating the matters. The administration of Batagram district is trying its level best to make Batagram the headquarters of the new division.

The chief minister has constituted a committee under the supervision of commissioner and it has been tasked with holding consultations with the representatives of all districts and finding a permanent solution to the problem.

It is worth noting here that after the creation of the new Abaseen Division, only Abbotabad, Haripur and Manshera would be part of Hazara Division. There are suggestions that Manshera district should also be split in two districts while others suggest to split Malakand Division too and Dir Bala, Dir Lower and Chitral Upper and Lower should be made into a separate division. After this only Buner, Swat and Malakand proper will be part of the Malakand Division.

“There are suggestions that Swat district should be divided into two districts and Shangla is already scheduled to be part of Abaseen Division,” another official said.

It is worth noting that during the ANP government all the plans to establish Abaseen Division were abandoned because of the differences about the location of divisional headquarters and currently the situation is not different.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 5^th, 2021.