Jampur City, which was completely submerged in 2010, is finally recovering from the devastation caused by last year’s floods.
According to local residents and tehsil officials, several housing schemes have been completed in the area and over 450 families have been given housing. “It has taken a while to construct stable houses that can survive strong weather conditions but we are finally optimistic about the future of Rajanpur,” said tehsil municipal administration (TMA) official Raza Shujaat. “I have personally monitored the construction of the colony’s and we now have a public school that operates up to the matriculation level, a public park and a dispensary,” he said.
One of the major projects to be completed in the area is the Rs677.45 million Jampur Bypass. On Wednesday, Rajanpur district coordination officer (DCO) Ghazi Amanullah said that this 14.78 km long road built over the flood protection embankments would facilitate smooth traffic operations and also keep the city safe from future flood threats.
The DCO said that 375 homes were presently being built for the flood victims and that 75 homes had already been completed in model village Rakh Azmat Wala, 100 in Rakh Fazalpur and 200 in Safdarabad and Chak Kuria Rojhan. “The keys to these homes will be handed over to the flood affected families soon after they are completed,” he said. “I have already received the keys to my home and I am very grateful. The village is developing in front of our eyes but we are scared that we might have the floods wipe out everything all over again this year,” said Riaz Masih, a Rakh Fazalpur resident.
Residents said that Rakh Kot Mithan had been selected by the district administration to build 500 homes under the chief minister’s Ashiana Housing Scheme and a summary had been sent to the authorities involved in this regard. “These new houses will be part of an entire colony. The area will have its own market, school, dispensary and cinema,” Muntazir Khan, an Ashiana scheme organiser told reporters. All major flood protection embankments have been fortified to protect the district from the flood threat this year. TMA officials said that the DCO has also approved the establishment of a park inside the DCO house in Rajanpur over a 67 kanal piece of land and TMA Rajanpur has allocated Rs4 million for the purpose. “All we can do is guard against the floods and hope for the best. This year, we are prepared. We have taken all the necessary precautions,” Amanullah said.
Local officials said that 67 agriculture graduates had also been allotted 12 acres and four kanals of land in the area and that more graduates would be accommodated as and when the state land gets vacated. “We have requested agriculture graduates to seek help from flood victims in the area in tilling their land. This will help employ these people,” said Rashid Sultan, a TMA official. APP
Published in The Express Tribune, July 14th, 2011.
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