A trip of hope to Thatta district

[semirza]

Vaqar Ahmed | 11th December, 2012

Last Sunday a friend invited me to go and see some of the rehabilitation work going on in the flood ravaged areas of Sindh. The work is being carried out by Karachi Relief Trust, a disaster management voluntary organisation, that has morphed into providing longer term solutions like re-building homes destroyed by the floods.

Armed with my camera and an extra battery I hopped into his car and we headed out towards Korangi then took the National Highway to Thatta district. Yes, I did need the extra battery; there was a lot to photograph!

Driving through fields of sugarcane and sunflowers, with a touch of serene blue provided by the shimmering fish ponds, it was difficult to imagine that last year the same area was submerged in flood water. Out of 1.7 million people in Thatta district, over 800,000 were directly affected and displaced by the floods. On the way we saw relief work being done by foreign and local organisations.



The existing house is the one on the left. The new one being built is to the right.

We visited the villages of Suleiman Kehrai, Nodo-Baran and Jati-Angario. What was immediately obvious was the alternate forms of construction. The new stone houses consisted of two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bath whereas previously, the villagers were living in homes that were made of straw, bamboo and mud. These were vulnerable in the floods whereas, the new houses have a life expectancy of at least 75-100 years. In the event of future flooding, the occupants could flee but would have somewhere to return to after conditions improved instead of being displaced and forsaken by the state.


New housing (under construction) is solidly built with stone.

The next village, Nodo-Baran, provided an example of the use of solar power. Eight solar panels mounted on a roof provided enough power to drive a motor. The motor in turn was hooked up to a pump that was pulling the water out of a borehole. The water was stored in an overhead tank. A piping network distributed water to the houses.

For lighting, each house was provided with two energy efficient bulbs that were powered by individual (thus very small) solar panels.


Solar panels provide electricity for pumping sweet water from the borehole in the Nodobaran village.


Solar power driven water pump.


Proper sanitary drainage running water for the first time in the history of the village.


This man said to me, “I had never even dreamt that one day there would be running water in my house”.


Two bulbs – one for the verandah and one in a room provide light.


Good housing, tranquil atmosphere. I felt like staying back!


The villagers themselves added the columns, and they did look elegant.


Many of the new houses in the village Jati-Angario are now occupied.


The rehabilitation team has designed cowsheds on one side of the village and all the villagers tie their cattle there. This gives the village a very clean look.


Using wood to cook food is relatively inefficient.

Instead of using primitive stoves that do not have a chimney to direct the smoke, KRT is currently designing a stove that would be heat efficient and will have a chimney. The design will be simple so that the villagers can manufacture it themselves.


A very pleasant boy, who just smiled when I said hello to him.

On the whole the atmosphere of the villages was quite inviting. The residents greeted us with warmth and mutual respect. There was in them a tangible, saturated sense of gratitude towards the relief workers.

The children appeared healthy and well fed. I chatted with the children but my lack of Sindhi was a handicap. When I said hello to the boy in the picture above, he just smiled and remained silent. I was later told he was born dumb. While distressed by this information, I was heartened to hear one of the senior KRT person instruct the local project manager to organise a medical check up of all the children in the village next week. He felt that if there is early detection of a problem, it could be mitigated.

While the villagers seemed healthy, their use of gutka (an addictive and carcinogenic form of tobacco) is a serious threat. Every man, woman and child is consuming this poison. As a shopkeeper in the nearby town put it, “In other places a newborn is given milk, here they give him gutka”.


Kids being enlightened on the evils of gutka.

An interesting idea explored during the trip was fish farming. Quick economic calculations indicated that it could be an excellent source of income for the villagers.


A small fish farm operated by a villager.

This trip was a big dose of optimism for me. With the thick clouds of despair so ubiquitous in Pakistan, the tenacity of the flood victims, the generosity of the donors and the dedication, planning, discipline and compassion of the doers will keep my spirits up and the hope for the future of Pakistan alive.

Photograpghs by Vaqar Ahmed.
The author is an engineer turned part-time journalist who likes to hang out at unfashionable places like shrines, railway stations and bus stops.
http://dawn.com/2012/12/11/a-trip-of-ho ... -district/

Hats off to Mr Vaqar Ahmed for showing us there is something positive being done for the flood victims.

[Mirza Ghalib]

So sorry, SEM, I meant much earlier to acknowledge your beautiful posting above which greatly helped to life my spirits at the time. And then, as such things happen, it slipped my mind. Well, no longer. Like you, I'll say hats off to Mr Vaqar Ahmed. There is so much that is murky not to say midnight-black in Pakistan as we write, a bit of light here or there can make all the difference. What touched me immensely was the "miracle" of running water the houses, sober, functional and yet not devoid of charm, can now offer ist dwellers. I was also put in mind of the many houses Imran Khan had built for the flood victims, something no one ever mentions nowadays. For me, each and every one of these constructions is more meaningful and important than any of the posh, luxurious houses being built more often then not on stolen land by the hateful rich around our country.