JHANG: People living within a radius of three kilometres on both banks of Jhelum river have urged the government to declare their villages calamity-hit and give them all the necessary benefits to alleviate their sufferings.

A medium flashflood had caused destruction in almost 150 villages alongside the river inflicting serious damage to the standing crops of fodder, rice, cotton and vegetables besides forcing the villagers to flee and shift their cattle and other moveable property to safer places.

However, there was no loss of life or property along this 120km stretch as villages in this area were built above sea level and were not affected by even very high flood. Yet, the loss to the crops as reported by the displaced villagers was huge and a substantial financial package was needed to rehabilitate them.

Although such a medium flood was supposed to pass downstream safely without breaking the river banks, somehow some gates of the Trimmu headworks remained closed, impeding the flow of floodwater downstream and transforming it into high flood upstream.

The inhabitants of the affected villages have demanded interest-free loans, wavier or postponement of their previous loans and other official taxes such as aabiana, malia and agricultural tax besides financial aid to sow the forthcoming wheat crop. They have also demanded immediate repair of eroded metal roads and soiling in the affected areas.

WOMAN KILLED: A woman was shot dead and her young daughter seriously injured when allegedly the woman’s father-in-law opened fire on both of them over a domestic issue.

Suba Khan, a resident of Jalalabad locality, allegedly had differences with his daughter-in-law, Khalida Perveen, over the transfer of 128 kanals of land that his son had transferred in her name before divorcing her. After the divorce, the suspect wanted his former daughter-in-law to transfer the land back to him.

Around midday on Sunday, Khan visited the place where Perveen lived with her children and reiterated his demand. Upon her refusal, he took out a pistol and fired at the family, killing Perveen on the spot and injuring her 20-year-old daughter Sajida seriously. The injured was shifted to the Jhang DHQ Hospital for treatment.

City police registered a murder case and claimed to have arrested Khan.

Published in Dawn, September 21st, 2020