DADU: Dadu deputy commissioner was transferred and Mehar assistant commissioner and Dadu DHO were suspended and transferred over their negligence in performing official duties in the wake of a deadly fire incident in Faiz Mohammad Daryani Chandio village of Mehar taluka on April 18 which had left nine children dead and 20 other people injured.

Chief Secretary Dr Mohammad Sohail Rajput, on the directives of Sindh chief minister, transferred DC Sami Nissar Shaikh and replaced him with Syed Murtaza Shah, and placed under suspension and also transferred Mehar AC Fahim Lakhiar and Dadu DHO Abdul Hameed Shaikh over negligence.

Besides death of nine children and injuries to 20 villagers, the fire killed over 250 animals and reduced 75 houses, stocked grain and uncountable number of household belongings to ashes.

Meanwhile, a joint team of National Disaster Manag­ement Authority (NDMA) and Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) distributed compensation cheques among heirs of the fire victims and the injured in the Faiz Mohammad Daryani Chan­dio village on Satur­day.

The NDMA team led by Brig Wasimuddin, member operations of Prime Minister House, and the PDMA team led by director operations Imdad Hussain Siddiqui gave away cheques for Rs300,000 each to the heirs of the deceased and Rs100,000 each to the injured. Cheques amounting to Rs100,000 each were given away to the 75 families whose houses were destroyed by the blaze.

Officers of the district administration also joined the teams in the process of cheques distribution.

Earlier, the PDMA and NDMA teams visited the village to assess the damage.

Published in Dawn, April 24th, 2022