Tag: Sindh

Face Discrimination From Pak Govt

Sindh Continues To Face Discrimination From Pak Govt

By LokMarg

The province of Sindh has been meted out with discriminatory treatment in water issues, this has become the fate of the province since Pakistan’s independence.

The injustice to Sindh continues to day against the province. If Sindh authorities remain silent on this matter it only adds to the discrimination and suffering of Sindh people, reported Sindh daily newspaper, Pahenji Akhbar.
Earlier, when other parties used to be in power in Islamabad, the Sindh government’s excuses were that they are not getting any support and there is none to listen to them in Islamabad which saved them from the Sindh people’s ire.

“But how can the Pakistan Peoples Party/Sindh government make an excuse now when it is a key partner of the federal government?” questioned the Pak vernacular media.

It advised the Sindh government to play an effective role in helping Sindh get its share of water and to stop all thefts on its share of water.

Punjab continues taking away Sindh’s share and Punjab does not care for Indus River System Authority (IRSA) directives; on top of all this, Sindh’s irrigation department is sitting quietly, added the publication.

Moreover, it remains to be seen how much gas Sindh gets from its gas deposits in Sindh and how much is given/distributed to other provinces.

Sindh is already grappling with several issues. If gas is made unavailable in Sindh, it will only add to Sindh’s woes, especially during winter just as power cuts become a big outcry during summer, reported Daily Kawish, a Sindhi newspaper from Hyderabad.

The statements being made by Sindh Chief Minister that Thar coal projects will bring prosperity, locals will get jobs and locals’ future will be brighter now, all these and more of such statements are being heard from time to time in Sindh and at Thar, but yet hundreds of children keep dying of mal-nutrition at Thar year after year.

Who will own up to responsibility for such a situation here Thar? Sindh and federal governments must go beyond empty statements and must take effective and result-oriented measures for ease of life in Sindh, said Daily Kawish.

Meanwhile, in Mehar (Sindh), the flood victims took out a protest procession and staged a dharna on the Indus Highway against the cutting and cracking of the Mahesar Wah and Sam branches.

The protestors said that due to the carelessness of the officers, Mehar and Radhan road has been submerged up to 2 km away from the flood water, and there is also a danger of drowning the colonies. The irrigation department is not closing the cuts and cracks, reported Daily Jang. (ANI)

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Hindu Girl Abducted In Sindh

Pak: 15-Year-Old Hindu Girl Abducted In Sindh

By LokMarg

A 15-year-old Hindu girl Chanda Maharaj has been abducted from Hyderabad in Sindh on Tuesday.

According to her parents, she was kidnapped from the Fateh Chowk area of Hyderabad when she was on her way back home, reported the Facebook page of Voice of Sindh.
Her father Ammar and her sisters said that she was forcibly abducted by people riding in a white car while coming home from the mill area of Fateh Chowk.

The accused is Shaman Magsi, who always used to harass her on the way, reported Voice of Sindh.

A complaint was filed with the police, however, no recovery has been made yet. According to Voice of Sindh, they have lodged the FIR with the police and SSP Hyderabad is not ready to take action.

The parents of the abducted Chanda are worried about their girl’s faith. They don’t know whether their daughter Chanda Maharaj is alive or has been killed. They requested the people of Sindh to help them to recover the daughter…!!

Meanwhile, the Voice of Sindh London chapter raised concerns over the series of kidnappings of Sindhi Hindu girls that continues unabashed in the region.

They highlighted forced abductions and conversions in Pakistan. Pakistan’s dilemma of forced conversions and marriages put minority women at risk and the issue of securing rights for minority women has become particularly complex in Pakistan.

Earlier in August 2021, a young Masih girl named Anita was abducted by a Muslim man “Muhammad Waseem” From Yazman City, Bahawalpur.

She said he forcibly converted her to Islam by taking her thumb impression on a paper and forcing her to accept him as her husband. He kept the victim in a locked room and repeatedly raped her, reported local media.

As Pakistan moves in an increasingly conservative Islamist direction, the situation of Hindus, Christians, and other religious minorities, especially that of women, is worsening, reported International Forum for Rights and Security (IFFRAS).

In September this year after more than a year of torture, the victim Anita fled from her abductors and filed a petition in the Family Court at Bahawalpur seeking annulment of the False/Forced marriage, according to local media.

The father of the victim said he is very poor and the abductor is a Muslim and very influential. The abductor restricted the victim’s family from filing any complaint regarding the kidnapping of their girl by giving them death threats and they are seeking protection from the court.

The situation faced by the Hindu and Christian groups in Pakistan is bad in general. Still, women from these communities are the worst victims of discriminatory attitudes of the authorities, political groups, religious parties, the feudal structure, and the Muslim majority.

Religious minority women and girls are abducted, forcibly converted, forcibly married, and abused, and their families are unsuccessful in their attempts to challenge these crimes using legal avenues, reported IFFRAS.

While the abductions, forced conversions, forced marriages, and abuse are perpetrated by individuals, the fate of religious minority women and girls is often sealed as the existing laws or handling of such cases deem any legal recourse unavailable or ineffective.

Human rights groups have documented the plight of Pakistan’s religious minorities for years, but it is only recently that these minorities have become the focus of popular discourse because of revelations on social media regarding their treatment, reported IFFRAS.

Abducting for the purpose of forced conversion and marriage is a major issue in Pakistan. Most of the victims are Christian and Hindu girls and young women, forced to wed against their will too much older Muslim men.

The plight of women in Pakistan is increasing day by day as a fresh report has stated that nearly 6,754 women were abducted in the country’s Punjab province in the first half of 2021. Out of that, 1890 women were raped, 3721 were tortured and 752 children were raped, Duniya News reported. (ANI)

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Pak’s Industries Bracing For Cut In Production, Layoffs

Pakistan’s Valmiki Community Protests Over Stoppage Of Temple Construction

By LokMarg

Valmiki community protested over the stoppage of the construction of 70-80 years old Valmiki temple in the Ghaspidhi area of Larkana in Sindh.

They demonstrated against decades of discrimination and subjugation by the Pakistan Government.

On October 8, The locals of the old Ghaspidhi area of Larkana (Sindh, Pakistan) took to a procession claiming that the district authorities have stopped the construction of 70-80 years old Valmiki temple in the area, reported local media.

They claimed due to this government’s apathy shown toward their community, there are less than 100 families left in Pakistan.

The protestors further said that they would not be able to celebrate their festival which falls on October 9. The protesters demanded an immediate start to renovation work without delay so that the work could finish in time for next year’s festival.

The local Valmiki community has been stopped from offering prayers citing the poor conditions and the damaged structural condition, reported local media.

The sect of the Valmiki are devotees of the sage considered to be the writer of the epic Ramayana, a holy scripture to Hindus. (ANI)

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Flood-Hit Pak Malaria

Flood-Hit Pak May See 2.7mn Malaria Cases By Jan 2023: WHO

By LokMarg

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Saturday warned of 2.7 million malaria cases in flood-hit Pakistan in 32 districts by January 2023.

The organization urged the international community “do a lot more” for flood-hit Pakistan. Cholera, measles, and dengue outbreaks are among other diseases, reported Geo News.
Declaring Pakistan floods a Grade 3 Emergency, WHO expressed its concern over the second wave of disease outbreaks grasping the flood-stricken areas of Pakistan, The News reported.

WHO’s representative in Pakistan Dr. Palitha Mahipala said that they were expecting 2.7 million malaria cases in 32 districts by January 2023.

Speaking about malaria, Dr. Mahipala said 32 districts of Sindh and Balochistan were “worst-affected” due to malaria where thousands of cases were daily being reported and added that they were fearing 2 million malaria cases by December and around 2.7 million cases by the end of January 2023 from these districts, reported Geo News.

“In order to prevent mortality due to malaria, WHO is providing rapid diagnostic kits and anti-malarial medicines worth USD 2.5 million while technical support is also being provided to the federal and provincial governments to deal with malaria outbreaks. As larvicidal preventive measures are not possible in flood-affected areas, prophylactic treatment and post-exposure treatments are being arranged to treat malaria patients”, he maintained.

“As (WHO) director general had warned earlier, the second disaster in the shape of outbreaks of water and vector-borne diseases has begun in the flood-hit areas of Pakistan,” said Dr. Mahipala.

He said that there are outbreaks of Acute Watery Diarrhoea (AWD) in 46 flood-affected districts while malaria outbreaks are being reported in 32 districts, reported Geo News.

Moreover, cholera, measles, and dengue outbreaks are among the other diseases which can lead to great loss if not paid immediate attention, he told reporters at a briefing at WHO Country Office in Islamabad, reported Geo News.

Terming the approaching winter as the third major challenge in the flood-affected areas, Dr. Mahipala said the combination of water and vector-borne diseases and harsh winters could become extremely lethal for the millions of flood-affected people who are living along hundreds of kilometers of roads in Sindh and Balochistan.

He maintained that WHO has declared the Pakistan floods as a Grade 3 Emergency, the highest level, which means all three levels of the organization — the country and regional offices, as well as headquarters — are involved in the response.

He added that WHO has appealed for USD 81.5 million to deal with disease outbreaks and to provide basic health services to the people at risk, reported Geo News.

Acknowledging the outbreaks of measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases including cholera and typhoid in the flood-affected areas, the representative said malnutrition was another serious challenge for the health authorities as mal-nourished children could become easy prey to infectious diseases and added that special campaigns were being launched to vaccinate as many children as possible in the affected districts, reported Geo News.

Responding to a query regarding the provision of clean drinking water to the affected people, he said WHO had provided 4 million aqua tablets that can make water germ free and suitable for drinking while they have established two filtrations in Sindh, adding that they would provide 1000 small filtration plants in the flood affected areas, of which 100 would be procured and installed very soon.

He further informed that WHO has started working on the renovation of 78 health facilities in the flood-affected areas, adding that WHO has pledged to renovate 200 of the most damaged health facilities in the flood-affected areas, reported Geo News. (ANI)

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Dengue Outbreak In Pakistan

Dengue Outbreak In Pakistan, Cases Exceed 30,000 This Year

By LokMarg

Pakistan’s capital city, Islamabad, reported 104 more dengue cases in the last 24 hours, taking the total tally to 30,267 in the country this year, local media reported, citing the Islamabad District Health Officer (DHO), on Saturday.

The federal capital has reported 2,435 cases in the current season, with an overall of 1,379 dengue cases have been reported in rural and 952 emerged from urban areas of Islamabad, ARY News reported.
The rising cases of dengue in Pakistan have claimed 68 lives so far this year, while the total cases have reached 30,267.

In the federal capital, the total cases have gone up to 2,435 while six people lost their lives to the viral disease in the current year. As per the sources, Sindh reported the most cases and deaths, ARY News reported.

Over 9,496 dengue cases, and 37 people were reported dead in Sindh. Punjab reported 6,564 cases, and 18 people lost lives to the virus. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa reported 8,070 cases and seven deaths, while Balochistan reported at least 3,402 dengue cases.

As districts in Pakistan continue to be affected by massive monsoon rainfall and unprecedented levels of flooding, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned of significant public health threats facing affected populations, including the risk of further water spread and vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever, ARY News reported.

The country is continuing to report more and more dengue virus cases daily, with panic and fear spreading among the public as a shortage of fever medicines has also surfaced.

Adding to the catastrophic situation, the fumigation drive was halted because the Karachi Municipal Corporation (KMC) ran out of fuel, sources said.

Sources told ARY News that the fumigation drive was halted due to the non-availability of petrol and diesel for the past four days.

Record monsoon and heavy floods in Pakistan have given rise to hunger and various illnesses which have affected 33 million people and the experts believe that the situation would aggravate in the coming days as the flood affectees are forced to live under the sky depriving the required resources.

Around 888 health facilities have been damaged in the country, of which 180 are completely damaged, leaving millions of people lacking access to health care and medical treatment, as reported in many affected districts.

Pakistan receives heavy — often destructive — rains during its annual monsoon season, which is crucial for agriculture and water supplies. But the heavy downpour this year has created havoc in the country, while rapidly melting glaciers in the north have for months heaped pressure on waterways.

Huge areas of the country are still underwater and hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes.

According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Pakistan is facing one of the worst flooding events in its history. The human and socio-economic toll is expected to increase as flood levels continue to rise, with immense pressure on the country’s dams. (ANI)

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