Operation khyber-1: PDMA prepared to accommodate more IDPs

PESHAWAR:

Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Muhammad Tahir Orakzai on Friday said at least 7,000 families could be displaced from Bara tehsil, Khyber Agency in wake of the ongoing military operation.

Orakzai said this while addressing the policy and strategy meeting (PSM) held at the Civil Secretariat. The meeting was chaired by K-P Relief, Rehabilitation and Settlement department Secretary Muhammad Ali Shahzada, with representatives of the Home and Tribal Affairs department, Pakistan Army and NGOs in attendance.

Orakzai added that the Jalozai Camp is prepared to accommodate the incoming IDPs from Bara. So far 1,515 families have arrived, from which 415 families have been sheltered at Jalozai Camp. He said that the provincial government will provide each family elder a stipend of Rs5,000.

The government is streamlining the travel procedures for IDPs, he explained. He added that most of the operation affectees have been registered and will only require a re-verification by the FDMA and UNHCR.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 25^th, 2014.