This is what was discussed at a talk on the drought and its effects organised at a hotel by the National Humanitarian Network.
Researcher and social activist Ali Akbar Rahimoo claimed that the Sindh Drought Mitigation and Management 2014 was in the final process of legislation with the Sindh government but due to the drought this year in Thar the situation is turning from bad to worse.
He referred to a research conducted by the Association for Water, Applied Education and Renewable Energy (AWARE) which said that providing 100 kilogrammes of wheat to a drought-affected family was not enough.
Dr Sono Khagharani said that consistent droughts were not only affecting the residents but the livestock as well.
Dr Wali Muhammad from the World Health Organisation insisted that there was a need to map and mobilise existing resources to save infants, mothers and elderly people.
He suggested that to strengthen the health system, stakeholders should come up with a plan and resources to combat the situation otherwise it could turn out to be worse than ever before.
Sartaj Abbasi, the provincial coordinator for the NHN Sindh chapter, shared that situation in Thar and other arid areas of Sindh had not changed. He said that the government should make an effort and ensure that relief goods reach the people in time.
Shah Jahan Baloch, an activist, said that the Sindh government should provide emergency assistance to the effected people as per the existing policy instead of taking time to come up with new legislation.
Dr Salman Safdar from the United Nations, said that during the last crisis in Thar, the UN did not play a major role as the government did not raise an appeal to the UN for for assistance.
Rahima Panhwar, Fakhira Abro, GR Baloch, Dodo Chandio and others also spoke at the event.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 19th,2014.
COMMENTS (5)
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@Zeeshan Ali:
I agree with you, but it is the govt who is heartless too, who even after few month of media exposure, has gone into a long slumber again. Heartless, are those too who got elected from this constituency & yet ignore these poor people, then give sermon that the media is exaggerating the situation. Only, if those elected from Thar stays there to feel how these poor people live....subsequent govt have continuously ignored this place...why ?
Responsive govts act to help their citizens during natural calamities. Easiest calamity to mitigate is drought because it does not come suddenly but creeps slowly. Failure to provide any assistance to poor suffering masses is nothing but criminal negligence.
There is an expensive way of making rain. It involves using airplane equipped to spray rain making chemicals possibly some kind of Bromide over the clouds. How much rain will it make and will this be a viable source of rain only the experts can tell.
@Vaqas, quite an ignorant person you are. Its hard to believe that you could be this heartless. Grow up, people are dying out there
The rain got sad and went away because inept people like you all just sad around and cursed it when it did rain. Crying out we are being flooded!! Now enjoy the drought.