Huddled at a muddy ground in Mehmoodabad, Rukhsana and her seven children, residents of Muzaffargarh district, rejoiced biryani, their first proper meal in ten days after floodwaters ravaged their village and left them penniless, starved and homeless.
“Stranded on a mud dune, we saw our homes, our lands, and our livestock being swallowed by the deadly waters. Even though we have nothing left to call of our own and are living in this cramped camp alongside buffaloes and innumerable flies, we consider ourselves extremely lucky to have survived the disaster,” she said.
At Marawat ground in Mehmoodabad, around 150 flood-affected people, mostly comprising women and minor children have sought refuge as the influx of migrants from the affected areas has increased.
“No one from the government informed us when the floods were coming. We left our homes only after water gushed into the village.”
In this chaotic situation, Rukhsana lost touch with her brothers and several relatives. Sitting next to her, a girl Aasia also said that the floods had separated her elder sister from her. “I am very worried as I don’t know where she is,” cried the 20-year-old.
The camp housing a number of refugees portrayed a heartrending sight as men and women consoled one another and shared each others grievances over the loss of lives and possessions.
Sitting on a charpoy, an elderly Haji Badal said, “Never in my life had I seen such a horrifying sight. Men and women were fighting against the waters in a bid to survive. We remained without food most of the time, and survived of morsels or any piece of edible anyone could lay their hands own.”
Fanning her child to sleep, Mumtaz, hailing from village Saiful Khan, Kashmore, demanded that proper shelter be provided to them by the government.
“We cannot go back as there is no trace left of our village and thus want a proper house here. When the floods overtook our village, we escaped and took shelter on a main road which connects Kandhkot to Karachi. When we came here six days ago, there was no facility for us and we broke our fast with roti.” However, now a medical desk has been set up in the camp by Jamshed Town officials and the civil society is providing them with water and cooked food.
A representative of the community Muhammad Yaqoob told The News that they managed to save around 10 animals while some 50-60 were swept away and the others were sold to pay for transportation.
“Instead of helping us out, the trailer drivers took advantage of our situation and demanded Rs 80,000-90,000 for bringing us to Karachi from Kandhkot. Whatever money we had, we paid to them,” he said, worriedly.
Yaqoob demanded that security and protection be provided to them in the wake of an untoward incident on Friday night, when armed men harassed and threatened them of dire consequences if they would not vacate the ground.
“We request the government to protect us as we fear that they will come back again and threaten us. We have not taken over the ground. We are just a bunch of helpless people who have unwillingly sought refugee,” he explained.
As misery surrounds these victims, the little ones remained oblivious of the crises situation back home and wished to return home. One of them, Safia, an eight-year-old, said, “I want to go back to my home and to my school. I don’t like it here as I don’t have a bed to sleep and I don’t have any toys,” complained the little girl.
