ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani border region struggling against Taliban and Al Qaida militants will distribute 30,000 rifles to villagers in hopes that local militias can help the provincial government regain control.

The announcement from the North West Frontier Province came yesterday as Taliban militants kidnapped a top government administrator and six of his guards in Swat valley, dealing a blow to efforts to restore peace.

Pakistan's government recently announced a seemingly conflicting deal in the Swat Valley - a Taliban stronghold within the province - to impose Islamic law if the extremists stop fighting.

It was also unclear if the embattled provincial government's plan had the backing of national leaders - or if handing out arms in a region already awash with weapons would help.

Village militias backed by the US have been credited with reducing violence in Iraq. A similar initiative is underway in Afghanistan.

Haider Khan Hoti, chief minister of the provincial government, said authorities would distribute the guns among "peaceful groups and individuals" so they could help police to guard their villages.

Officials would consult with local police chiefs before handing out the arms and would take them back if they were not used against "terrorists and troublemakers," Hoti's office said. Hoti said the guns were on hand, having been seized from "terrorists and anti-state elements."

He also approved a plan for an elite provincial police unit of 2,500 officers and said the province would meet the $40 million (BD15m) cost.

The militia plan raises doubts about the coherence of Pakistani efforts to counter Taliban groups who have seized growing pockets of the northwest, forged links with al-Qaida and carried out a blur of suicide bombings.

Pakistani officials have encouraged residents to establish militias in the semiautonomous tribal areas sandwiched between the North West Frontier Province and the Afghan border.

The kidnapping of Khushal Khan, district coordination officer of Swat, was a set back for government's hopes of curbing violence in the valley.

He was travelling by car to Mingora, the main town of Swat, when he was abducted by "miscreants", Syed Mohammad Jawed, commissioner for the Malakand division which includes Swat,said.

Muslim Khan, the Taliban spokesman in Swat, said the group claimed responsibility.

"He is our guest. We have to discuss some issues with him. We will serve him with tea and then free him," he said.