Jirga opposes lease of nullah for taking sand.

SWABI -- Members of Maneri Bala Jirga said here on Sunday that no one would be allowed to take sand from 7,000-kanal area of nullah (locally known as Khwar) for construction purposes.

The district mineral department has already given the nullah on one-year lease to six contractors for Rs1.4 million and they had also started charging the local people for taking sand and other material from there.

The jirga was held at the residence of its vice-president Sher Ali Khan in Naro Kallay and attended by its members and the contractors.

The contractors told jirga that they were authorised under the lease to charge the people who were taking sand from the nullah.

The meeting said that earlier the contractor would charge Rs150 for a trolley of sand, which had been increased to Rs350 by the new contractors. 'This is not acceptable to us,' said Sher Ali.

The members warned the contractors to stay away from the nullah, saying that...