Recommendations of the post disaster conference

Disaster in the Karakurom Mountains / Hunza

March 2, 2010

The following recommendations were made at a post disaster conference held at the National Press Club Islamabad. The conference was organized jointly by Sungi Development Foundation, Progress Youth Front and the Gilgit – Baltistan Human Rights Association. The conference was attended by MNA Marvi Memon and officials of Geological Survey of Pakistan, National Disaster Management Authority, FOCUS Pakistan, other NGOs and a large number of people belonging to or interested in Gilgit – Baltistan. [Ed.]

1. The landslide villages including Attaabad and onward Gojal valley should be declared calamity-hit area;
2. The pace of work on the landslide blockade should be accelerated and water from the artificial lake should be released quickly so that livelihood means of small farmers should be saved;
3. Rehabilitation of IDPs in Attaabad and Ayeenabad of the landslide should be workout based on the aspiration of affected people;
4. The need is to device a comprehensive plan/ mitigation to save lives and properties of people and key physical infrastructure including key Bridges, KKH and other built environment  downstream- villages of district Gilgit, Diamer and Kohistan;
5. Provide agriculture inputs- fertilizer and seed to those who have not yet lost their farmland;
6. Provide essential food items and fuel at the subsidized rates and design a transparent system with the help of civil society organization to monitor the distribution;
7. Provide internet facilities in Gojal so that the students who in different government and private institutions  down country can have communication back home;
8. Transfer  a surgeon and gynecologist  to government owned health facility in Gulmit- the tehsil headquarter to look after 25000 people of the valley;
9. Write off loans of those who had invested credit in  farming and off-farming activities;
10. Pay fee of the students ( school, college and university) of small farmers who have directly or in directly effected from the disaster;
11. Studies are needed on socio- economic and cultural implications – displacements of families from due to natural disaster;
12. Get international help- expertise in carrying-out studies on geohazard assessment and other ecological aspects of the glacier behavior, landslide wetland and other environmental issues;
13. Concern government departments and International agencies should work on the geological mapping and geosciencefic surveys. Also hydrological surveys should be expanded to those mountainous areas and information should be shared with relevant organizations and Karakarum University.
14. There is a need to offer jobs for young people from G-B in the government and non- government organizations that have mandate of taking care of ecological/ climate change and other relevant organizations issues.
15. International NGOs working in those areas on natural environment should offer internship and scholarships to students from Gilgit-Baltistan in relevant institutions within Pakistan and elsewhere so that the students are better equipped and can serve the country in those mountainous areas.
16. The organizations involved in natural environment issues and disasters to revisit their beliefs and practices and focus more on preparedness and mitigation and built the organizational capacity to and invest in preparedness and mitigation;
17. The need is to built institutional capacity of relevant organization in geological assessment; preparedness and mitigation through attending courses abroad and networking with relevant countries;
18. The Media team, specially the TV channels should visit the area and share the experience with the people at large in the country.

Compiled By M. Darjat, Islamabad

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Pamir Times is the pioneering community news and views portal of Gilgit – Baltistan, Kohistan, Chitral and the surrounding mountain areas. It is a voluntary, not-for-profit, non-partisan and independent venture initiated by the youth.

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