SIALKOT - The brick kilns have stopped working with the advent of rainy season in Sialkot district as the first widespread torrential rain of monsoon has affected thousands of kilns across the district.

Thousands of brick kilns' labourers working here belong to Southern Punjab areas and now they have gone back to their homes to spend the rainy holidays after stopping their work in the kilns.

Kiln owners Nasir Mehmood, Rana Arshad, Bashir Ahmed, Iqbal Ahmed, Ghulam Hussain and Ch Mustansar Ali said that the routine work at the kilns was usually stopped on the beginning of each rainy season in Sialkot district.

The owners said, "The labourers go back to their native areas to celebrate their rainy season holidays with their families." These holidays persist till the beginning of the month of September, when they get back to their work places for their labour. "The routine work mostly remains suspended during the rainy season at almost all the bricks kilns in Sialkot district due to the non-availability of labour," they revealed. The manufacturing of new bricks is totally suspended at almost all the kilns.  Due to this prevailing situation, the rates of bricks are likely to rise. At present, the rate of a 1000 bricks is Rs8,500 to 9,000. However, Rs1000 increase in the rate is likely by the bricks kilns in Sialkot region, they said.

Pesticides seized in raid

A team of agriculture department raided a pesticides selling shop of accused Waqas Rana at Ranjhai-Daska. The team led by Assistant Director Agriculture Sialkot Muhammad Latif seized big quantity of fake pesticides.

Daska Saddar police have started investigation after registering a case against the accused, with no arrest, in this regard.

Meanwhile, a special team of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) raided at Narowal and arrested two notorious accused human traffickers Talib Hussain and Islamuddin.

The accused send the innocent people from Narowal to abroad illegally after getting the big amounts from them. The FIA has sent the accused behind the bars after registering separate cases against them. Further investigations were underway.