Personnel of Levies, Khasadar forces: Parliamentary panel concerned at non-payment of salaries, pensions

A parliamentary panel Monday expressed serious reservations over nonpayment of salaries and pensions to personnel of Levies and Khasadar forces, besides appointments in violation of merit.
The Senate Standing Committee on States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) met here with Senator Taj Mohammad Afridi in the chair. The agenda of the meeting included: briefing by political Agent/ DO Khyber to the committee about the issues including honorary shoulder promotions to junior officials of Khyber Khasadar and Khyber Levy forces causing sense of deprivation among the senior officials; reinstatement of those officials of Khyber Khasadar force and clerks who were earlier retired under Khasadar Rules 1950; posting of officials of Khyber Khasadar and Khyber Levy forces in the offices of AC and DC for performing clerical duties while clerks are performing duties at security check posts; and briefing by secretary Law and Order Fata with complete details of tehsildars and naib-tehsildars posted in the erstwhile Fata with their names, actual posts, and BPS.
The agenda also included briefing by the secretary SAFRON and chairman Higher Education Commission in the light of the decisions of federal cabinet taken in its meeting of March 02, 2017 and recommendations of the Safron committee in its meetings that said, "Quota of Fata students in education and health institutions in other provinces should be doubled and retained for 10 years after integration with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa."
The committee was further briefed about the point of public importance raised by Senator Aurangzeb Khan on nonpayment of salaries and pensions to the personnel of Levies and Khasadar forces working in Kurram and Orakzai districts.
The committee also reviewed the challenges emerged after Fata-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa merger scenario and directed the departments concerned to apprise the committee of the details.
The committee recommended for ensuring the implementation on allocated increased quota in higher education institutions and universities to the Fata students as per the cabinet decision, besides giving them equal education opportunities. Afridi said that the Fata students are not inferior to others, but there is a need to provide proper opportunities to them.
Senator Samina Saaed said that besides the education opportunities in local /national universities, the Fata students should be sent abroad for higher education on scholarships and proper steps should be taken for promotion of higher education there.
The committee was informed that these directives have yet to be implemented in medical and engineering universities as it needs an approval from the Pakistan Medical & Dental Council (PMDC) as well as Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC).
The committee recommended for securing students' future and said that the institutions concerned should coordinate and expedite process to solve students' problems on urgent basis.
The committee chairman said that they should be apprised of the post-merger issues and needs, adding that a threadbare discussion is needed where all departments concerned should be invited to present the real picture.
Some committee members including Maulana Atta-ur-Rehman expressed reservations over the appointment of tehsildar and naib-tehsildar on nepotism and stated that the committee would deliberate upon it thoroughly.
Taj Afridi and other committee members expressed serious reservations over stopping of salary to 742 Levies and Khasadar personnel and termed the action violation of human rights. The committee recommended a stern action against those who took huge work form these personnel but neither released salaries nor pensions to them.
The committee was informed that the number of personnel who did extra work after their retirement date is 742 and they were not paid for that. Senator Aurangzeb had raised this issue with the Ministry of Safron on which a letter was written to the Finance Ministry, but it did not get satisfactory reply from the department concerned. However, the Ministry of SAFRON has constituted a committee which would propose measures to solve this issue and give due rights to these personnel.
Senator Sajjad Hussain Turi expressed concern over the departmental promotion committee (DPC) and personnel promotion matters and recommended for greater transparency in the issue.
Senator Taj Afridi directed the officials concerned to solve the nonpayment issue of personnel and inform the Senate panel about the recommendations of the committee constituted by the Safron.