Seven children, three women among 13 killed in Karachi landslide

KARACHI: Thirteen people were killed and four others injured when a portion of a hill collapsed near the Continental Bakery in Block-1 of Gulistan-e-Jauhar in the small hours of Tuesday, burying the makeshift houses built below under tons of mud and rocks.
Rescue workers took four to five hours to dig out the bodies of 13 victims, seven of them children, three women and three men. The search for more bodies ended at 8pm.The victims were members of three families. Five of the victims had arrived in Karachi from Khanpur, Rahim Yar Khan and eight had come from Yazman, Bahawalpur.
The landslide occurred between 1:30am and 1:40am and most of the victims were buried alive while asleep.Amid reports that the makeshift houses were built on a plot carved out through the illegal process called ‘China-cutting’, the provincial government has formed a team including SSP East Jawed Jiskani and the East deputy commissioner to probe the case.
The SSP East told The News that the survivors of the landslide and residents of nearby houses had given different statements about the status of the land. Some believed that the plots were illegal and created through China-cutting. Others said they were legal. Some also claimed that the poor settlers at the land were being threatened to vacate it.
The SSP said the land belonged to a police official and plots of other police officials and politicians were also located on the same street.“So far, there appears to be no sign of any criminal activity that caused this incident,” he added. “But we will investigate the possibility of the involvement of land mafia in it and also ascertain the status of the land.”
The rescue operation was conducted jointly by the police, Rangers and the district administration.The members of one family killed in the landslide were identified as Ghulam Fareed, 25, his wife Rehana, 22, his sons, Muqadas, 5, and Mohammad Ahmed, 2, and his daughter Sadaf, 3. The second family included Mohammad Ayub, 50, his wife Nasreen, 45, their daughters, Maira, 12 and Zahira, four months.
The third family included Khursheed, 26, his wife Fatima, 20, their sons Azan Abbas, 3, and Ayan Abbas, 1. The bodies were shifted to the Edhi morgue and later handed over to the victims’ legal heirs.
The Karachi commissioner has imposed a ban on construction of buildings in the hilly areas of the city following the deadly landslide, adds Fasahat Mohiuddin.Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqi said he had issued this order for the safety of citizens. He added that the plan for constructing a building in such areas would be approved first.
The commissioner also formed an inquiry committee headed Deputy Commissioner East Asif Jaan Siddiqui, the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation director land and the municipal services senior director.