News
Monday, November 12, 2012
Govt flayed for depriving flood victims of relief
By Asghar Azad
KARACHI: We are the voters of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), but no one amongst ruling leaders is extending us help and providing necessary assistance, including relief goods, potable water, and last but not least draining out rainwater from agricultural lands.
Several flood affected people detailed this ordeal while talking to Daily Times during a visit to rain-hit areas by this scribe. Those who spoke included Ameer Bakhsh Bahyo, Abdul Hameed, Raza Muhammad, Shaukat, Piyaro, Yaseen and other residents of heavy rain-hit district Shikarpur and adjoining villages like Jaggan Bahyo, Izzat Ji Wandh, Jeser Bukejo and Paharr Jo Goth.
On way to the affected villages, it was observed that roads were still submerged with rainwater and so far no measures were adopted by the authorities concerned to drain it out. Besides thousands of acres of agricultural land and numerous houses were still inundated.
Ameer Bakhsh Bahyo, an affected villager, told Daily Times that they had appealed to the Deputy Commissioner Shikarpur and other government officials to discharge rainwater from their village and agricultural land since it was accumulated on the day one however, no one came for. He moaned that government visited the area couple of time but never bother to enquire about their plights.
Another villager Abdul Hameed Rahoojo said that they heard about the relief packages for the rain affected people and tried to approach administration, as well as their political leader Sardar Wahid Bakhsh Bahyo to get relief goods, but remained fail to get any response. Replying a query he said, “We directly approached Sardar Bhayo but he seemed hapless before the administration to get any kind of help for us.”
Yaseen Bukejo, Ali Nawaz and others said that they had been facing problems and complexity for over last two months.
They were of the view that they supported PPP in elections, but the ruling party thoroughly failed to live up to their expectations, even in the need of hour.
To a query, Yaseen said that villagers had learnt that the government was sending thousands of tents, large quantity of relief goods and other material to flood-affected people. He further said that they were still deprived of any relief, and all those relief items, including worthy tents, were distributed among people with political discrimination.
It is pertinent to mention here that the flooded localities of Shikarpur district are completely agro-based and people of the localities lost their ready to harvest paddy, vegetables and other crops, besides Mangos. Now they are unable to sow for forthcoming season due to standing rainwater in the area.
Earning livelihood has almost become impossible for them as heavy rains deprived them of all kinds of their small business and shops.”
It is the responsibility of the PPP-led government to provide the affected people with some relief and ensure the provision of financial assistance so that they could run their daily livelihood.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk