The real tragedy

No nation can rise until all of its people come together and act with united resolve to help themselves stand on their feet. As we near our 75^th independence day, we are forced to ask ourselves whether that holds true for Pakistan anymore. Over 15 years ago, tragedy had struck Pakistan when a massive earthquake had jolted areas in and around the Balakot town of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. The earthly upheaval devastated the surrounding areas. Balakot, ground zero as it was, could not be found anymore. Over 80,000 souls were lost in an instant that morning.

In the aftermath of one of the biggest natural disasters seen by the country — and there have been many more disasters in subsequent years — Pakistanis at home and abroad as well as the global community came together to help rebuild and restore. Yet, over a decade and a half later, not only are the promises of building a new Balakot are still rooted in a proposed papers, but the expenditure of millions has failed to rebuild lost schools in the area.

Recently a teacher — who had been forced into retirement because the school she taught at had been destroyed by the quake and the government had failed to rebuild the school — approached the Supreme Court. While the top court swiftly restored her services, it lamented why the government has failed to repair or rebuild schools in Mansehra city, an area adjoining Balakot and amongst the hardest hit.

It is obvious that education falls at the lowest priority for many in power. But it seems the government has hit a new low by doing little to rebuild schools. The provincial government, led by the PTI for eight years now, had opted to merge many of the schools in the region because it was cheaper than fixing critically damaged schools, but it never attempted to solve the underlying problem. The real tragedy of the October 2005 earthquake has been how we have forsaken the survivors.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 10^th, 2021.

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