Floods, Now Torrential Monsoon Rains Leave Pakistani Women in Crisis

Women outside an emergency vehicle aimed at helping those affected by flooding. CREDIT: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPSBy Ashfaq YusufzaiPESHAWAR, PAKISTAN , Aug 18 2023 (IPS) Torrential monsoon rains have left the people, especially women, in crisis as they are still grappling to recover from the last year’s floods in Pakistan. “We are yet to return to normal lives after devastation caused by severe rains in June 2002 when the new series of rains have started only to further aggravate our problems,” Jannat Bibi, a resident of Kalam in the Swat Valley, told IPS. Bibi, 44, a housewife, along with co-villagers, must walk about a kilometre twice a day to collect drinking water for her 10-member family. She says they want the government to provide them with essential needs like food, water, shelter, and medication. “A new ongoing wave of monsoon rains has left us high and dry as we are facing a host of ailments due to contaminated water.” “Some non-governmental organisations have given us mineral water, utensils and foodstuff last year in June when torrential rain damaged our mud-built houses, but this year, there’s nobody to extend us a helping hand despite severe floods,” she says. Most people in the neighbourhood fear that more rain would bring more misery for them as the people have yet to rebuild their homes while roads and health facilities were in shambles. Dr Farooq Khan in Swat district says the people desperately require clean drinking water as cases of diarrhoea h...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Asia-Pacific Climate Change Development & Aid Environment Featured Headlines Health Humanitarian Emergencies Poverty & SDGs TerraViva United Nations IPS UN Bureau IPS UN Bureau Report Pakistan Source Type: news