VECTOR-BORNE DISEASES: As media reports suggest, malaria and other vector-borne diseases are spreading in flood-hit areas. A woman in Sangrar in Sukkur district recently lost her life to malaria owing to lack of medical facilities. Shortage of mosquito nets and medicines needed to treat malaria is making things worse in the area. The matter needs the urgent attention of the relevant authorities.

Abdul Qayoom
Sukkur

TALENT HUNTING: Tennis star Aisamul Haq deserves to be appreciated for launching a talent-hunt drive that would spot young tennis talent in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and Peshawar, and provide free training and necessary accessories to the selected 16 individuals. It is actually something that the relevant authorities should have done long ago, but didn’t. We should be grateful to the star player for doing it on his own.

Rahim Khan
Charsadda

EDUCATING GIRLS: The literacy rate in Balochistan is the lowest in the country, and the rural-urban divide has further compounded the situation when it comes to girls’ education living in rural areas. It is widely assumed that parents do not allow girls to continue with their education. This is not the complete truth. The government’s negligence lies at the core of the issue. Perhaps girls’ education is not the government’s priority anymore. Despite cultural and other odds, girls still want to get education and the government needs to prioritise girls’ education in rural areas.

Hatir Aslam
Quetta

DROWNING CITY: Sensing the possibility of Mehar city getting submerged, the residents rushed to erect an embankment to stop floodwater from entering the city, but the protective embankment got breached soon as it could not face the ferocity of the flood. Many areas around the city have been inundated, and if more rains come down, as predicted by the Met office, Mehar city itself will struggle to survive. The authorities concerned should save the residents of the city before the calamity hits.

Mudasir Jalbani
Karachi

Published in Dawn, September 13th, 2022