BADIN, Aug 12: A complete strike was observed in Badin on Tuesday on the call of Awam Dost Panel Nazims against the district relief committee constituted by the Sindh government and short supply of relief goods.
In the morning, some shops were opened but youths forced the shopkeepers to close the shops. On the Seerani Road, some shopkeepers were reportedly beaten up to close their shops. Six persons, Anees Mallah, Ghulam Raza, Ms Suraya Bhatti, Moharram Chandio, Rajab Chandio and Ali Gul Chandio, were injured in such incidents.
Later, a big procession was taken out from the Seerani Road.
A large number of people of different villages also came to the town and joined the procession, which was led by Union Council-3 Nazim and District Public Safety Commission chairman Dr Abdul Aziz Memon. District Nazim Kamal Khan Chang also joined the protest.
The procession after marching through the Shah Latif Road reached the Kazia Canal bridge chowk.
Talking to the protesters, Mr Chang said the scope of the protest would be enlarged if the district relief committee was not suspended in two days. He said the authorities had diverted brackish drain water to Badin.
Meanwhile, the relief distribution work has been suspended as Nazims have boycotted the operation.
The chairman of the district relief committee, Syed Ali Bux Shah, has dispelled the allegations levelled by the district Nazim and other Awam Dost Panel Nazims.
Talking to this correspondent on Tuesday, Mr Shah regretted that due to protest by Nazims, rain victims would be deprived of relief.
He said Nazims were politicizing the relief process. He said they also wanted to cover the irregularities they had committed in distribution of relief goods.
Major Sanaullah said a newly-constituted monitoring team had begun an investigation into irregularities in distribution of relief goods among the affected people.
RELIEF CAMPS: DCO Syed Mumtaz Ali Shah has said out of 81 relief camps, 44 have been closed.
Talking to this correspondent, he said the people had been leaving relief camps since water started receding.
He said 5,726 rain victims were staying at 22 relief camps in Badin, 4,573 persons at 14 centres in Tando Bago and 125 persons at a camp in Talhar.
The DCO said the district had received Rs40 million from the Sindh government and Rs7 million was drawn from the district account.
He said 346 trucks loaded with relief goods were received out of which, 149 trucks were supplied to the Badin taluka Nazim, 103 to the Tando Bago taluka Nazim and 73 to the Shaheed Fazil Rahu taluka Nazim. He said relief goods of 21 trucks were distributed by army personnel through helicopters.
He said donor agencies were being approached for more relief goods.
Answering a question, the DCO said the distribution process was temporarily suspended and it would be resumed as soon as relief goods were received.
MNA: MNA Dr Fehmida Mirza has demanded of that the government should announce a Rs5 billion package for providing relief and ensuring rehabilitation of the rain and flood-affected people of Badin district.
She also called on the government to grant Rs150,000 compensation to each bread earner who had died in the rain and flood-related incidents, farm loans should be written off and new mark-up free loans be provided to the affected landholders.
Talking to this correspondent here on Monday, Dr Mirza criticized the government for failing to provide proper relief to the rain-hit people and alleged that the federal and provincial governments were not making serious efforts to help the victims.