Dyke breach: ‘Water was everywhere but government was nowhere’
Villagers in Layyah sub-district plug breach in dyke on their own.
MULTAN:
More than 3,000 people affected by Indus water gushing out of a breach in a privately raised dyke, on Wednesday protested against the government for not helping them.
Villagers in Basti Garah, Basti Gandha and Basti Sehar said the government had done nothing to provide relief to them since the breach of Basti Sarai dyke last Friday.
Twelve villages were inundated and crops on thousands of acres destroyed after the breach. Villagers on Wednesday plugged the dyke on their own, supported by the money donated by Iftikhar Ahmed Khan, a former mayor of Layyah.
“The government is nowhere to be seen,” Khan told The Express Tribune, vowing to raise more money to help the people affected by river water. Khan said 1,000 sandbags had been arranged with the help of civil society to plug the dyke.
The villagers shouted slogans against the government. “Farmers have suffered enormous losses due to the breach. Our livelihood now completely depends on the livestock,” Manzar Hussain, a farmer, said. He said crops worth approximately Rs 500 million had been damaged by the river water.
The government had said that villagers had made the dyke on their own. However, the protesters demanded that the government reinforce the dyke to avoid any mishap in the future. They said that water level had started receding after the initial repair of the dyke, and that they would start moving back to their house on Friday. They feared outbreak of diseases, including dengue and gastroenteritis, in the inundated areas because of the stagnant water.
Layyah District Coordination Officer Nadeemur Rehman said the government was busy in the upkeep of Ramazan bazaars which he said were being supervised by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif. Layyah Executive District Officer (health) Iqbal Bhatti said he had received no instruction from the provincial government to set up medical camps in the affected areas.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 3rd, 2014.
More than 3,000 people affected by Indus water gushing out of a breach in a privately raised dyke, on Wednesday protested against the government for not helping them.
Villagers in Basti Garah, Basti Gandha and Basti Sehar said the government had done nothing to provide relief to them since the breach of Basti Sarai dyke last Friday.
Twelve villages were inundated and crops on thousands of acres destroyed after the breach. Villagers on Wednesday plugged the dyke on their own, supported by the money donated by Iftikhar Ahmed Khan, a former mayor of Layyah.
“The government is nowhere to be seen,” Khan told The Express Tribune, vowing to raise more money to help the people affected by river water. Khan said 1,000 sandbags had been arranged with the help of civil society to plug the dyke.
The villagers shouted slogans against the government. “Farmers have suffered enormous losses due to the breach. Our livelihood now completely depends on the livestock,” Manzar Hussain, a farmer, said. He said crops worth approximately Rs 500 million had been damaged by the river water.
The government had said that villagers had made the dyke on their own. However, the protesters demanded that the government reinforce the dyke to avoid any mishap in the future. They said that water level had started receding after the initial repair of the dyke, and that they would start moving back to their house on Friday. They feared outbreak of diseases, including dengue and gastroenteritis, in the inundated areas because of the stagnant water.
Layyah District Coordination Officer Nadeemur Rehman said the government was busy in the upkeep of Ramazan bazaars which he said were being supervised by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif. Layyah Executive District Officer (health) Iqbal Bhatti said he had received no instruction from the provincial government to set up medical camps in the affected areas.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 3rd, 2014.