HYDERABAD, Sept 26: A meeting regarding the assessment of losses caused by recent rains and review of relief activities in Hyderabad district was held here on Thursday.

The meeting, presided over by the adviser to the Sindh chief minister for home and coordination, Aftab Ahmed Shaikh, unanimously decided that the provincial government would be asked for more funds for payment to rain victims of the district.

It was informed that Rs9.2 million out of Rs10 million released by the provincial government had already been utilized for purchase of machinery and other material to drain out the stagnant water and relief measures.

The meeting was informed that 62,374 applications were received from rain victims and verified.

It noted that 16 persons were reported to have lost their lives and heirs of 11 of them had been paid compensation.

The meeting was informed that 4,470 kutcha houses and 116 pucca houses were destroyed and 19,751 kutcha and 753 pucca houses were partially damaged due to the rains in the district.

It was decided that in future payment to rain victims would be made through MPAs concerned through cross cheques.

The district relief committee unanimously nominated DCO Mukhtar Ahmed Aziz as disbursing officer and constituted a five-member committee headed by MPA Aslam Pervaiz to verify the expenditure of the already utilized relief funds and submit a report after physical verification in a week. MPA Arshad Shah, Syed Jalal Mehmood Shah, HDA director general Ali Ahmed Lund and Wasa managing director Tahir Ahmed will be the members of the committee.

Those who attended the meeting included Sindh minister for Auqaf, Zakat, Ushr and religious/minorities affairs Dr Irfan Gul Magsi, adviser to chief minister for health Noman Segal, adviser to CM for NGOs Mir Ali Nawaz Talpur, the MPAs of Hyderabad and others.

Our Correspondent adds: Earlier, the adviser, while talking to journalists, opposed the initiative of the district Nazim, requiring elected MPAs/MNAs and Sindh ministers/advisers to send their development schemes in connection with a Rs10.50 billion uplift plan for Hyderabad district, announced by Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali.