Famine in Tharparkar

ISLAMABAD: Tharparkar is caught in a deadly cycle of drought and famine. People have nothing to eat and drink. Children, pregnant women and the elderly are the worst affected. The entire population of the area has become dangerously underweight. Reports reveal that over 200 children, 60 pregnant women and dozens of elderly men and women have died due to starvation and non-availability of water in different areas and that the number is set to rise due to acute malnutrition. Thousands of families have travelled to different cities of Sindh in search of food, shelter and livelihood.

So far, hundreds of thousands of livestock are reported to have been destroyed due to the devastation of the drought. The drought-stricken people are forced to sell their livestock at throwaway prices to buy food. As the drought worsens, pitiably, our thick-skinned provincial rulers and insensitive and the inept local administration are doing nothing to manage the situation. The UN aid agencies, NGOs, and national and international charity organisations, among others, are requested to take practical steps to distribute food to those affected by the drought and provide them with health care, veterinary services and livestock feed for the sake of humanity.

Hashim Abro

Published in The Express Tribune, March 9^th, 2014.

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