Khan was not the only one searching for valuables through the heaps of rubble on the fateful day. PHOTO: INP
ISLAMABAD:
Kabil Khan, a brother of nine sisters and sole breadwinner of his family, had to rush back to his home in I-11 on Thursday from the nearby Fruit and Vegetable Market where he works, after he heard about the forced eviction drive being carried out at the squatter settlement he lived in.
Upon his return, all he saw was a pile of rubble where his home once stood. Khan, with his bare hands started digging only to recover few damaged household items from the rubble that he shifted to the median of nearby Faqir Appie Road.
Khan, 18, said he was aware of the possible eviction drive but had no idea the authorities would not even give them enough time to take their valuables out of the house.
His father, Farid, who died three years ago, shifted to the settlement from Mohmand Agency when the slum started developing in 1985.
“I don’t know exactly when he [Farid] shifted here. But, I and my sisters were all born at this house,” he said, pointing towards the site where his home once stood.
“I don’t have any idea where to shift my family,” Khan said, when asked.
Khan was not the only one searching for valuables through the heaps of rubble on the fateful day. Members of around 150 families were similarly busy, equally shattered.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 31st, 2015.
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