MIRPUR (AJK)-The terrible earthquake and follow up aftershocks rendered hundreds of thousands of people shelterless, bringing the life to stand-still in Mirpur (AJK) and adjoining Bhimber districts.
Most of the poor and middle class ill-fated shelter-less families have been shifted or being shifted into the tents, several of the well-off affected people have moved into rented buildings located at safer places to avert threat of more human loss in case of recurrence of the deadly-eventuality.
Authorities here said that the quake-hit Mirpur Sub division is comprising over 2.84 lakh (284449) people of a total of 43,632 families dwelling in the area of a total of 23 patwar circles.
Hectic relief and rehabilitation operations have been kicked off by the government including the National and State Disaster Management Authorities, besides the international, national and local registered NGOs with the coordination of Mirpur Division and District administration with prime focus to bring the life back to normalcy through completion of reconstruction and rehabilitation process.
Unveiling the so-far breakup to this direction, Commissioner Mirpur Division Muhammad Tayyeb, who is directly supervising the relief and rehabilitation process, told the media in a briefing in his office Saturday evening that all those injured in the catastrophe, have so far been shifted to the newly-constructed 500-bed medical complex at the Mirpur Divisional Headquarter hospital to ensure better Medicare. “The injured feel more comfortable at the new block - opened on emergency ground to ensure survival of the precious lives”, Tayyeb said.
Director General Mirpur Development Authority Ch Ejaz Raza was also present on the occasion. The DG MDA revealed that a survey to assess the loss to buildings in housing sectors of the MDA has so far been launched by the authority. He added that special survey teams have been deployed to file comprehensive data about the loss by visiting door-to-door the residential and commercial buildings in the areas falling in the jurisdiction of the areas of the MDA, he added. Director Electricity and Incharge NGOs and relief Shahid Hussain Malik was also present on the occasion.
Referring to the distribution of relief goods to the affected people, Divisional Commissioner Muhammad Tayyeb said that 3,300 tents, 650 plastic sheets, 2,200 blankets, 450 mattresses, 200 gas cylinders, 275 kitchen sets, 200 first aid boxes, 3,000 cooked food packets, 14,200 bottles of water, 100 water tanks of the capacity of 2000 gallon, 250 nets for safety from mosquito have been distributed to the affected people till September 27 evening by the relief teams comprising Pak army jawans, civil administration and the NGOs.
He continued that survey teams comprising engineers have been rushed to the affected areas to assess the gravity of loss occurred to the buildings with the focus to assess whether or not the damaged buildings are suitable for further use.
The Commissioner said that at least two thousand more tents would be required for the shelter-less affectees and the NDMA and other relief bodies have been asked for the supply of same relief goods.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Medical Association Mirpur District President Dr Ijaz Ahmad Raja while addressing a press conference here Saturday appealed to the Prime Minister of Pakistan to announce the establishment of full-fledged tertiary care hospital and Cancer Hospital at Mirpur AJK during his forthcoming visit to the earthquake-hit areas.
The PMA district chief paid rich tribute to PM Imran Khan for his, bold, realistic and courageous address in UNGA highlighting the urgency of the solution of Kashmir issue and for the early release of besieged and subjugated people of Kashmir under Indian occupation.
“PM Khan has once again won the hearts of the people of Jammu and Kashmir dwelling either side of the line of control and rest of the world”, he observed.