Addressing the tribespeople in Darand Shekhan on the occasion, Khan said, “It is the conviction of the Pakistan Army that today the agency has been freed of militants.” He added, “It is now the responsibility of tribal elders and the people to ensure anti-state and anti-social elements do not infiltrate their ranks.”
The PA said it was impossible to undertake development projects when the state’s writ was being challenged.
“The government will reconstruct all schools and basic health units destroyed during the military action,” he said, announcing a degree college and a sports complex for the area.
He was accompanied by sector commander Colonel Zahir and Assistant Political Agent Ahmed Zeb.
Also speaking on the occasion, Zahir said the army could not have achieved its objectives without the support of the people of the area.
“We will now work for the society’s betterment by improving infrastructure,” he said. The colonel added, “Whoever works in collusion with the militants will be considered an enemy of the country and the army would come down hard on such elements.”
With the conclusion of military action, displaced families have also begun to return to their native villages.
Repatriation
The demand for repatriation by the tribespeople has grown as they have remained in camps for all these years.
Official statistics show around 48,656 people from Orakzai Agency are internally displaced. As per the plan for repatriation to be implemented by the government, the first batch of internally displaced persons consisting of 4,708 families will be relocated to their areas before August 30, 2015 within a period of one month.
Central Orakzai was considered one of the main hubs of militants in the region prior to the military operation. It shares a border with Tirah of Khyber Agency and Frontier Region Kohat. It was also used to cause trouble in neighboring Kurram Agency.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 12th, 2015.
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