Relief camps and shelters should be introduced in different locations within Karachi
KARACHI: As Karachi advances into the summer months, a certain fear lurks in the minds of citizens. The Met Department has recently announced that a heatwave will hit the city during the ongoing month of May. With temperatures soaring to around 40 degrees, many people are at risk of dying from dehydration or heat stroke.
While many of us have the facility to stay at home and cool off in our air-conditioned rooms, a vast majority of people are forced to work in the sweltering heat in order to provide food for their families. It will be wise for the government and people alike to learn from similar events that took place in the year 2015 during which no less than 2,000 people had lost their lives because of the intense heat.
During such times, it is important to remain empathetic towards workers and helpers. We need to donate as much as we can and offer them a bottle of cold water. It is our responsibility to take care of those around us. Business owners and industrialists need to make sure that labourers are not being overworked, and given timely breaks in work. The number of working hours also needs to be reduced so that such people are not subjected to heat directly from the sun.
Since the heatwave is a recurring phenomenon, the government needs to come up with a more permanent system to counter the problem. Relief camps and shelters should be introduced in different locations within Karachi so that citizens are able to cool down during travel. This year the government must take extra precautions in order to save lives.
Ahmed Rasheed
Published in The Express Tribune, May 18th, 2020.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.
