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On Sept 8, 2010. I visited flood hit areas of southern Sindh province where some seven million people have been affected by flood and living in very harsh conditions in the open.
The weather was extremely hot and humid in these areas wondering how the poor souls were surviving there. Almost all of us were severely exhausted during the field trip and helicopter journey.
It was hearth-wrenching to see the plight of flood survivors especially children and women.
People living in tents in intense heat and humidity complained about lack of relief but at the same time expressed desire to return to their villages and rebuild their homes.
Mohammad Ramzan, 24, who came swimming in flood water with the help of an empty plastic Jerry can in the town of Ghauspur said that "It took me one and half hour to reach from my village to this road to get ration for my family back in the village." The roads and tracks leading to my village some two miles away are still under water, but people have started returning, despite all difficulties."
Administration chief of Kashmore district Syed Abid Ali Shah said that "We provided clean drinking water to flood hit people, that is why there is no case of cholera.
At a tent school outside the town of Kandhkot, some 200 boys were taking lessons in their native Sindhi language and national language Urdu. Only half of the children were sitting on benches, while rest were sitting on shabby mats in the roadside school. Vaccinators were giving them anti hepatitis C shots as the children as young as five crammed from books.
In Sukkur, some 100 angry flood affected men blocked the main highway for about one hour and broke window glass of a bus to protest non-payment of five thousand rupees cash, announced by government.The protesters wanted payment of 5,000 rupees before Eid, but on pursuasion by authorities they dispersed peacefully wowing to stage another protest on Thursday. A senior army official said that troops were deployed here about one month ago and with untiring efforts and planning they were able to save Sukkur. Round the clock reinforcement of embankments saved Sukkur from a major catastrophe, the army official said.
We started from Islamabad airport around 8 am on a chartered ATR, reached Sukkur in one hour 50 minutes. After a briefing in VIP lounge, we boarded a UN helicopter and traveled towards Thul, Ghauspur and Kandhkot. Kandhkot is district headquarter of Kashmore. Returned to Sukkur. Around 7.00 pm we started for Islamabad and reached their before just before 9 pm.
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