Protesters block Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Karakoram Highway over unfulfilled promises on road, water projects

Residents of Ranowali and Dubair areas of Lower Kohistan district in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province blocked the Karakoram Highway to protest against the failure of the Pakistan Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) to fulfil a 2022 agreement regarding road reconstruction and water supply, Dawn reported.

The blockade took place on Friday and caused major inconvenience to people travelling between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Pakistan-occupied Gilgit-Baltistan (PoGB).

Former provincial minister Malik Aurangzeb said protesters raised slogans against WAPDA in the Dubair area. “The WAPDA chairman signed an agreement with us in a jirga (assembly of leaders) two years ago to reconstruct the 28-km-long Dubair Road and the 6-km-long Ranowali Road and supply us with potable water, but there has been no progress,” he/she was quoted as saying in the Pakistan news outlet.

Aurangzeb further said that despite several protests the Pakistani government has not taken any steps to resolve the problems of the residents.

Another speaker Malik Salahuddin highlighted that during a 2022 meeting with victims of the Dubair Khawar project, the WAPDA chairman promised to repair two local roads and restore drinking water systems damaged by floods with the help of the World Bank. However, these promises have not been fulfilled yet.

During the same protest, Juma Shah Jalai, chairman of Dubir Bala Village Council, said WAPDA should ensure the safety of people living downstream from the Dubir Khawar hydropower project. “The Hazara Division commissioner has invited us to Abbottabad for talks, but we want him/her to talk to us on our land in the presence of all stakeholders,” he/she said.

Earlier, local governments, including tehsil, village and neighbourhood councils, had protested against the provincial government for not releasing development funds since the establishment of local government in the province about three years ago.

Government services in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are facing many problems related to outdated infrastructure and inadequate facilities. Service centers and government officials lack basic resources to effectively serve the public.