Abandoned citizens

Do you know anything about Chacha Zaman who lost everything he had, to a high flood on the night of August 20? Surely nobody knows about him because he lives in a very small village of Tehsil Daraban Kalan in Dera Ismail Khan. He and thousands like him became victims of the latest floods that swept away the areas of Saraiki Waseb, Balochistan and Sindh.

These flash floods were caused by torrential rains, an unprecedented amount of water that broke all previous records. Such heavy flooding has wreaked havoc on these already vulnerable people. Thousands of families in the Damaan region between Koh Suleman and River Indus have lost their homes, livestock, crops and grain storage. Many families are looking for their missing family members who got separated due to the heavy floods.

When such a catastrophe struck millions of Pakistanis, the government and media were nowhere to be seen. There was little media coverage of this issue of utmost urgency. Government authorities have very few resources at their disposal and they don’t seem much interested in the state of their citizens. Private NGOs, welfare trusts and individuals have been working on their own to provide relief to the needy. Roads are broken, bridges are badly damaged and most of the villages already had no roads which makes it almost impossible to access the needy.

These climate disasters actually reveal how food insecure our majority citizens are. It is impossible to cook for families whose homes have been destroyed. So dry food is needed for them. Volunteer teams are also distributing dry ration packs among the families. Fortunately, the spirit of hospitality in the people of Saraiki Waseb is much alive. The nearby villages which are safe have been of great help. Locals are distributing cooked meals and giving shelter to the homeless. No government aid has yet made to these areas.

Talking of water, the conditions are dreadful. Most of the villagers are drinking floodwater because they have no other source of water. In the last 75 years, the government has been unable to provide any source of clean drinking water to its citizens. By drinking floodwater, the villagers are getting different water-borne diseases like hepatitis and cholera. There is a serious need to provide clean drinking water to these areas.

Hundreds of citizens are severely injured due to collapsing walls and roofs. Not a single first aid team has reached far-away villages and many of the injured have been waiting for medical teams. Also, there are countless children and women who need immediate medical attention. The health infrastructure of the country is also almost non-existent. There are many pregnant women who are suffering immense pain and discomfort due to lack of basic life facilities. These citizens are part of a state that spends billions on elite subsidies and non-productive affairs.

Most of the TV news media seems to be more focused on petty political fights. It seems Shahbaz Gill is more important than millions of Pakistani citizens stuck in floods looking for food and clean drinking water. This very clear apartheid speaks a lot about the priorities of our state and all of its pillars.

Apart from all these immediate steps, it is time to think of structural changes and reforms. Climate change is here. It is knocking at our doors. Pakistan seriously needs to rethink its policies in accordance with the climate change situation. There is a need to enable and empower local communities to fight climate change. Sustainable development, water management and preservation of natural resources is the only way forward.

Our country also needs strong and resilient infrastructure to combat such circumstances. The biggest problem right now in flood relief activities is connectivity. Most of the villages already have no paved roads. If any, they were already in a very bad condition. Most of the bridges were constructed in pre-Partition times and have been badly damaged by the recent floods. A complete rehaul of roads and bridges is needed to restore connectivity.

Old electricity poles and wires also gave up to the huge amount of water. Therefore, such villages lost electricity and mobile and internet signals. There is also a need to renew this infrastructure. These are a few of the very basic and grassroots needs that need to be addressed immediately.

These floods have revealed the living conditions of the majority of the population. It is high time we rethink our politics, economy and policy priorities. Structural and systemic changes are needed to combat the monster of climate change and its disasters. Otherwise, the majority of our population will be at the mercy of natural disasters.

The writer is a freelance contributor.