BAHAWALPUR: A shepherd allegedly died of thirst due to the extreme heat while roaming the vast desert of Cholistan after wandering away from the traditional route.

The death of Muhammad Aurengzeb (24) was confirmed a day earlier by his family members and the officials of the Cholistan Development Authority (CDA). According to them, Aurengzeb, a resident of Chak 95/DB in Yazman tehsil about 40km from Bahawalpur, left on the morning of Tuesday and during the daytime reached Toba Bhawaliwala with his herd.

According to CDA water supply employee Muhammad Aslam, his cattle drank water from the CDA’s pond and the deceased himself filled his bottle with water. Later, on Tuesday afternoon, he reached the CDA’s water point at Panjkote. According to another shepherd, Gaman Bohar, the deceased and his livestock drank water there and he filled a water bottle and set out for home.

However, according to the deceased’s family members, he lost his way and his water bottle also ran out. They claimed that he informed his family members about his situation on the phone and they went out to search for him on Tuesday night. The family claimed to trace him alive and served him drinking on Wednesday noon. However, they claimed that he expired due to dehydration.

Dawn has learnt that death due to dehydration of a local was rare as they were used to facing such situations and had alternative water arrangements and were also accustomed to their routes in the desert. Locals claimed that such a death had been reported after several years.

ATTEMPTED RAPE: Two attempted rape cases had been reported in the Vehari district on Thursday.

In one case, the Gaggo Mandi Police claimed to have arrested a suspect rickshaw driver for allegedly attempting to rape a divorced woman in her house in Chak 363/EB.

According to the police, the suspect used to take the victim’s children to school and noted that she was divorced. Late on Wednesday night, he allegedly barged into her house and attempted to rape her. On hearing her screams, her family members, including her father, woke up and caught him. After the police reached the scene, he was handed over and a case was registered against him.

In the second case, the Gaggo Mandi Police registered an attempted rape case of a minor girl at Chak 177/EB against one U, who was yet to be arrested.

According to the police, S (9) was playing in the village street when the suspect allegedly lured her to nearby fields and attempted to rape her. When the girl raised the alarm, area people and her family came to her rescue and the suspect fled from the scene.

After the police were notified, the police inspected the scene and registered an FIR against the suspect.

CLASH: Seven persons, including two brothers, of two rival groups suffered serious injuries in a clash over a family dispute in Chak 36/DB.

The injured, including brothers Muhammad Ismail and Muhammad Ishaque, were shifted to the hospital, while the police reached the scene and took several of them in custody.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2026