In Gilgit-Baltistan, natural disasters are never short-term events. Earthquakes, floods, and landslides leave lasting impacts, and the real struggle for affected families begins when rescue teams leave and emergency aid slows down. The victims of the Attabad landslide and artificial lake, Tali Das in Ghizer, the Babusar floods, and recently earthquake-hit villages of Chipurson illustrate this harsh reality.
In the immediate aftermath, the state response is usually swift, under the glare of television cameras and the pressure of social media coverage. The army, civil administration, humanitarian agencies, and volunteers mobilise. Even when delayed, emergency support is generally adequate to meet basic needs. Lives are saved and temporary relief reaches communities. For a while, it seems the state stands firmly with its citizens. But as cameras move on and social media finds new stories to tell, attention fades and institutional momentum weakens.
Within weeks, emergency funding dries up, and government departments become entangled in reports and approvals. A dangerous gap emerges between relief and recovery, leaving families trapped between survival and rebuilding. A senior UN disaster risk reduction official has observed that “readiness for resilient recovery means having pre-disaster planning that empowers communities to recover faster and more sustainably.”
In high-altitude regions like Gilgit-Baltistan, such delays are especially harmful. Winter arrives early, roads close, and construction seasons are short. Losing one season can mean losing an entire year. UNDP experts note that recovery must be “planned, inclusive and forward-looking,” turning crises into opportunities to build safer futures.
The human costs are immediate and long-lasting. Families are forced to live in tents or damaged homes. Livestock die or are sold at extremely low prices to meet food, education, and medical needs. Livelihoods collapse, children drop out of school, and young people are pushed into migration.
These challenges reflect deep structural weaknesses. Rescue, relief, and rehabilitation are handled by different institutions, leading to poor coordination. Bureaucratic delays and land disputes slow reconstruction, while early recovery, the vital bridge between relief and rehabilitation, is rarely prioritised. Transitional shelter, winter preparedness, livelihoods, irrigation, education support, WASH, psychosocial care, and protection for vulnerable groups are often neglected. The restoration of roads, power, and digital connectivity, lifelines for recovery, is frequently delayed, as multi-agency coordination remains weak and even basic field assessments struggle for funding in the absence of dedicated budgets. Global DRR frameworks warn that recovery must “Build Back Better” by prioritising resilience, inclusion, and sustainability.
This situation can change. Many countries have developed effective early recovery systems that empower local authorities and involve communities in reconstruction. In Gilgit-Baltistan, resilient rebuilding based on local materials such as stone and timber, combined with seismic reinforcement and technical guidance, is both possible and necessary.
The core problem, however, is mindset. Disasters are still treated as isolated, short-lived events rather than long-term human crises. While saving lives is essential, saving livelihoods and dignity is equally critical.
Full rehabilitation takes time and depends on micro-zonation, land-use planning, land development, and community consensus on housing design. Yet early recovery provides a vital bridge between relief and rehabilitation. It restores hope, replaces despair, and helps communities look toward the future with confidence. Well-coordinated rescue and relief operations, followed by carefully planned and effectively implemented early recovery, significantly reduce the burden of large-scale reconstruction while protecting livelihoods.
As the rescue and relief phase ends, it is time for the Planning and Development Department to take the lead, in partnership with development and UN agencies and line departments, and immediately prepare and fund early recovery plans for the earthquake-affected Chipurson Valley. These must focus on restoring lives, livelihoods, and essential public and community services, while detailed assessments, hazard surveys, micro-zonation, and land-use planning are carried out for permanent rehabilitation and reconstruction.
Disaster management is not just about responding to sudden shocks; it is about sustaining lives, livelihoods, and communities over time. For regions like Gilgit-Baltistan, treating early recovery as an integral part of disaster response is the only path to lasting resilience.
