PAK civil society urges India, Pak to allow relief goods across LoC

A H Nizami. Dated: 9/24/2014 4:07:40 PM

Joint disaster management mechanisms suggested

MIRPUR (PAK): Sept 23: The participants of a civil society meeting Tuesday urged the government of India and Pakistan to allow the people of Pakistan Administered Kashmir (PAK) to send immediate relief goods for the flood-affected people across the Line of Control (LoC) including Srinagar and rest of the terribly flooded valley.
The meeting was organised by the Centre for Peace, Development and Reforms (CPDR) to analyze post-flood situation across the LoC and develop understanding about generating collective civil society response to similar natural catastrophes in future.
The secretary State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) Akram Sohail stated on this occasion that recent floods caused unprecedented and irreparable loss to the property and state infrastructure. Around 64 people lost their precious lives and around fifty thousand have been displaced, resulting in huge financial loss of nearly 4,539.806 million stated Secretary SDMA here in a civil society meeting in Islamabad.
Highlighting the dire need of joint mechanisms of disaster management across the LoC, participants stated that disaster knows no borders so State of Jammu and Kashmir across the LoC needs a joint mechanism to respond to natural calamities in an effective way. It was underlined that the people of either side should establish joint disaster management aiming to share real time information and make timely response to avoid the unprecedented loss of lives in such disasters.
A joint institutional mechanism across the LoC is justified and is imperative to save the precious lives of people of LoC said Amjad Yousaf, Executive Director Kashmir Institute of International Relations (KIIR) Islamabad.
The participants were of the view that PAK government faces serious capacity issues and government institutions lack vision and strategy to confront unseen catastrophes. “It appears that the government has not learnt much from the earthquake of 2005 and there is a need for more effective preparedness and mitigation to cope with such natural disasters,” said Ershad Mahmud Executive Director CPDR.
It was reinforced that the International Charity, welfare and relief organization must be given immediate access across the LoC so that they could help the marooned people of Kashmir. The participants stressed that it was human issue and politics must not hinder the rescue and relief activities.
Zulfiqar Abbasi founder President Jammu Kashmir Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industries (JKJCCI) said that JKJCCI could play a vital role to support the flood affected people and this disaster could be turned into opportunity if permitted by Islamabad and New Delhi. From the other side of LoC, speaking through Skype Y V Sharma, President Jammu & Kashmir Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industries expressed deep concern over the devastating effects of the unprecedented floods which have caused havoc on both sides of the Line of Control.
He assured the J&K JCCI would make all possible efforts to support traders affected by the floods and to advocate for the immediate resumption of the trade. He appealed to India and Pakistan to immediately repair road network connecting Azad Jammu and Kashmir with the Indian administered Kashmir so that trade and travel could be resumed. Meeting was also attended by Ambassador Arif Kamal, Tahir Aziz Conciliation Resources UK, Dr. Syed Waqas Kausar, Saleem Bismil, Ex-Secretary AJK (PAK) Government, Research Scholar Rukhsana Saaid and Abdul Sattar.

 

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