Zardari's ancestral village at risk of inundation

Areas around Fatwal Zardari are already inundated; villagers complains about authorities' 'mismanagement'

KARACHI:

Authorities appear to be unable to save Fatwal Zardari village, the ancestral village of former president Asif Ali Zardari. A ring bund (safety dyke) has been built to secure the village while surrounding areas have submerged.

Aftab Zardari, a village of the former president’s cousin, was completely inundated by flood water, a local resident told The Express Tribune. He added that several villages located in taluka Sakrand had also flooded.

Wahar, the ancestral village of Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah located near Sehwan, was also submerged after breaches were made in Manchhar lake.

Shabeer Ahmed Shah, a resident of Bhudal Shah village near Zardari’s village, alleged that two union councils in Sakrand taluka were underwater for the last two weeks due to the negligence of the government.

“The rain has not directly affected our areas, but the rainwater released from other areas has inundated us,” he said.

Another resident of Bhudal Shah claimed that authorities have deliberately flooded the area.

“They seemed unaware of the landscape,” a villager on the condition of anonymity said. He added that it would take years to remove the stagnant water from the area.

Read Hot weather grips Sindh's flood affected areas

“This is nothing but mismanagement,” he remarked.

Hundreds of villagers were displaced while crops, including cotton and sugarcane, were mostly destroyed by the flood water.

“There is no way to drain out the water from any side,” said another villager Dr Mashoq Ali Shah.

“This accumulated water will remain there for a couple of years. This will submerge thousands of acres of very fertile land for several years,” he feared.

A resident of the area also pointed out that the water level in the area was rising and alleged that more and more water was being released into the area.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Shabeer Ahmed Shah said officials released rainwater from Jamal Shah and Kazi Ahmed towns, affecting a vast area of Mekaro Dhoro union council.

He maintained that major villages including Fatwal Zardari, Aftab Zardari, Khosa village, Ghulam Mari village, Ali Khan Mari village, Sono Daheri village, Tanwri village, Bhudal Shah village, Daheri Kot and adjacent areas had been inunadated.