Families displaced by floods preparing dinner at their temporary shelter at Makli Hill grave yard, Sindh province, Monday, Aug 30, 2010. - Photo by AP.

The floods are forcing people to go towards whatever higher ground is available. One such site is the Makli necropolis in Sindh, where an estimated 400,000 displaced people have been living under open skies since the weekend.

Not only is their presence a cause of damage to the site, the supply of potable water and food they are receiving is far from adequate and leading to fights between the displaced and the locals. Moreover, whatever supplies are available have been donated by private parties. Despite their desperate situation, these thousands of people have received no attention from the local administration. Given that each day for them is a battle against nature and over scarce resources, it is imperative that the Sindh government take immediate steps to move the displaced to emergency camps or solid shelters such as school buildings or others belonging to the district administration.

The shifting of these thousands of people must be done as a matter of urgency because as citizens they have equal claim to the government's attention. Furthermore, the damage being wrought to the Makli necropolis by such a massive inrush of people must also be considered. The displaced people have no choice but to set up makeshift shelters, tandoors etc, on the site and in many cases stones are being plundered from the tombs. Some of these tombs date back to the 14th century, and the site has immense historical, archaeological and architectural significance. It is one of the largest necropolises in the world and is included on Unesco's World Heritage List. Conditions in the necropolis have already deteriorated due to official apathy and the effects of pollution and expanding urbanisation. The site must not now be allowed to suffer further destruction as a result of becoming a camping site for thousands of people affected by the floods.