Hazara University expansion: Dhodial residents refuse to give agricultural land

ByOur correspondent

MANSEHRA: The residents of Dhodial village have refused to give their agricultural land for the expansion of Hazara University.

“The vice-chancellor has asked the district administration to acquire 1,100 kanal of land for the expansion of the Hazara University. This is unacceptable to us. We would not give even an inch of our land,” Mohammad Nawaz Khan, the former district councillor, told a news conference in Dhodial on Monday. Flanked by a group of villagers, Nawaz Khan said the residents of Dhodial and its adjoining areas give their agricultural land for the establishment of the Hazara University. “The government recently also acquired thousands of kanal of our agricultural land for the construction of the Hazara Motorway. Now it wants to acquire another 1,100 kanal for Hazara University,” he said. Another local elder, Saeedur Rehman said they would block the Karakoram Highway for an indefinite period if the district administration imposed Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act. “We are law-abiding people and don’t want to create hurdles in the execution of any project but if the government attempted to deprive us of our land which is the major source of our livelihood we would not only block Karakoram Highway but also move court of law,” he said.