PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Relief, Rehabilitation and Settlement Department has started distributing solar-powered radios for disaster preparedness and management in areas like Chitral and Swat that are prone to flash floods, said an official on Saturday.
“The basic purpose of this initiative is to keep the community informed about potential floods and glacial outbursts by sending them early warning messages,” said the department’s spokesperson, Latif-ur-Rehman, while talking to Arab News. “These places are vulnerable to such disasters and lack communication facilities, such as landlines and mobile phone networks. It sometimes takes us six hours to convey message to the community.”
The radio distribution and awareness program began on August 1 and it will continue till September 15. The radio programs envisioned for the area will focus on natural disasters, especially floods, and will also highlight the potential damage from such calamities, the precautionary measures that can be taken against them, and government interventions in terms of its relief efforts.
So far, the department has distributed about 500 radio sets that can also be charged through their rotating handles in the absence of the sun.
“These radio sets are given to every sixth household in these areas so they can also help inform the rest of the community. The information will be delivered through both FM and AM radio stations,” Rehman informed.
The authorities have engaged the Pakhtunkhwa Radio, Sunno FM and Radio Pakistan to broadcast special programs for these areas in their local languages.
Hayat Muhammad Kalami, a local journalist, applauded the government for taking these steps.
“Timely communication can help reduce flood damages to the minimum,” he said. “Communication is always a major problem in this region and it is important to deal with that challenge.”
Kalami told Arab News that landline communication in the area had been suspended since 2010 when a flood wiped out the whole cable line of the Pakistan Telecommunications Limited. Even the mobile phone operators provided patchy service in the area, sometimes completely cutting off its residents from the rest of the country.
Dr. Hameed Jamali, who teaches development studies in Peshawar, noted that the government had set the duration of the program in view of the glacier melting period that ranged from July to September.
“In theory, the use of radio for disaster preparedness is a very good strategy,” he added. “However, it is important to ensure the effectiveness of the drill and the messages must be produced in such a way that they yield the desired results.”
KP distributes solar-powered radios in disaster-prone areas for better communication
KP distributes solar-powered radios in disaster-prone areas for better communication
- So far, 500 gadgets have been distributed among residents of districts that are vulnerable to flash floods
- Most of these places face severe communication problems, with no landlines facilities and patchy cellphone services
Pakistan sets expectations for Trump-backed Gaza Board of Peace at UN
- The country calls for ceasefire enforcement and reconstruction of the war-ravaged territory
- Pakistani diplomat warns Gaza recovery must proceed without annexation or forced displacement
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday highlighted its expectations of US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace (BoP) in Gaza, saying it joined the United Nations-backed body alongside other Muslim nations since it expected concrete steps toward a permanent ceasefire, reconstruction of Gaza and a lasting and just peace grounded in the Palestinian right to statehood.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the Gaza Board of Peace charter earlier this week along with other world leaders on the sidelines of the 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, told an open Security Council debate on the Middle East that the decision was driven by the need to address the “unresolved Palestinian question,” which he described as “the core of the instability” in the region.
“We hope that the BoP under the framework of resolution 2803 will lead to concrete steps toward the implementation of a permanent ceasefire, further scaling up of humanitarian aid, reconstruction of Gaza, and realization of the right to self-determination of the people of
Palestine through a credible, time-bound political process, consistent with international legitimacy and relevant UN resolutions resulting in an independent, sovereign and contiguous state of Palestine based on pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital,” Ahmad said while addressing the council.
“That is the ultimate goal supported by the international community,” he added. “Palestinian-led governance and institutional strengthening, with a central role of the Palestinian Authority, are indispensable in this regard.”
Ahmad maintained Pakistan was deeply concerned about the fragile situation in Gaza, pointing to Israel’s continued ceasefire violations that he said were putting civilian lives at risk. He stressed that the ceasefire must be fully respected with a view to a permanent cessation of hostilities.
The Pakistani diplomat said recovery and reconstruction should begin without delay and must proceed without annexation, forced displacement or any alteration of the territorial unity of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
“The contiguity of Gaza and the West Bank is indispensable for the viability of the Palestinian state,” he said.
Ahmad also called for a credible, irreversible and time-bound political process culminating in the realization of Palestinian statehood in accordance with international legitimacy.
“The international community, particularly this council, bears the responsibility to translate renewed engagement into measurable change on the ground for the betterment of the Palestinian people,” he said, adding that Pakistan was ready to work with “members of the council, regional and international partners, and the United States to advance a just and lasting solution to the Palestinian question, and comprehensive peace in the Middle East.”
