KARACHI: A fact-finding mission conducted by a network of rights activists in South Asia on Friday criticized Pakistan’s response to the devastating 2022 floods, highlighting significant shortcomings in housing, sanitation and health care for flood-affected communities in Sindh.
The 2022 floods, triggered by unprecedented monsoon rains and glacial melt, displaced millions, killed over 1,700 people and caused damages exceeding $35 billion, leaving vast areas submerged for months.
The fact-finding team of South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR) visited Sindh, surveying several districts, including Larkana, Shikarpur, Nawabshah and Hyderabad, from January 6-10 to assess the government’s compensation and rehabilitation efforts.
“The preliminary findings contradict the provincial government’s claims of launching one of the world’s largest housing projects for flood affectees,” said Ahmad Rafay Alam, an environmental lawyer and SAHR Bureau Member, during a press conference in Karachi.
The mission raised serious concerns over the proposed one-room “flood-resilient” housing model, calling it insufficient and lacking essential amenities such as kitchens and toilets.
“With skyrocketed inflation, the Rs300,000 ($1,077) compensation per house is unreasonably low,” SAHR said in a statement.
It maintained there was not much consultation while designing the houses, questioning their climate resilience and warning they were unlikely to survive future disasters.
“More severe natural calamities will impact this vulnerable population, and it is highly unlikely that these structures can withstand another heavy rain,” it noted.
In Dhand, a village near Mohenjo Daro, SAHR found that only four out of 40 destroyed houses had been rebuilt.
“Some families still live in tents or neighbors’ homes, and with average family sizes of six people, it is impossible to live in these single rooms, especially when some family members are married,” it said.
The regional rights network urged the government to conduct fresh surveys to ensure no genuinely affected individuals were left out. It informed that many residents had reported difficulty in finding their names on government beneficiary lists, delaying relief.
SAHR also highlighted poor sanitation and health care in affected areas, reporting that villages lacked drainage systems, leading to outbreaks of diarrhea, malaria and skin infections.
Arab News reached out to provincial officials, including Sindh’s Information Minister Sharjeel Memon and Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah’s spokesperson Rasheed Channa, but received no response.
Sadia Javed, another government spokesperson, said she would review the mission’s findings but had not responded by the time of filing this report.
Rights network criticizes flood compensation and rehabilitation efforts in Sindh
https://arab.news/zmpw6
Rights network criticizes flood compensation and rehabilitation efforts in Sindh
- Network’s fact-finding team says not much consultation was done while designing houses for flood-hit families
- It says these one-room ‘flood-resilient’ structures lack basic amenities like toilets, can’t withstand heavy rain
Pakistani stocks hit new high on upbeat data, major earnings announcement due this week
- The benchmark KSE-100 index gained 2,653.87 points, or 1.45 percent, to close at 182,408 points
- United Bank Limited emerges as largest listed company, with capitalization crossing $4.6 billion
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday continued its bullish run and crossed the 185,000-point mark for the first time ever, analysts said, with investors opting for equities rather than fixed-income assets amid prevailing positive sentiment.
The benchmark KSE-100 index at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) gained 2,653.87 points, or 1.45 percent, to close at 185,062.10 points, up from the previous close of 182,408.23 points.
Ahsan Mehanti of Arif Habib Commodities attributed the bullish run to major earnings announcements due this week as well as upbeat data for cement, fertilizer and oil sales in Dec.
“Surging global equities and government deliberations over privatization of SOEs (state-owned enterprises) played a catalyst role in record close at PSX,” he said.
During Tuesday’s session, United Bank Limited (UBL) emerged as the largest listed company on the PSX, with its market capitalization crossing Rs1.29 trillion ($4.6 billion) and overtaking the Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), according to Arif Habib Limited brokerage firm.
Pakistan’s stock market has marked a strong start to 2026 as broad-based institutional buying has lifted major sectors and bolstered investor confidence at the beginning of the year. The market has gained more than 10,000 points since the start of the new year.
On Monday, Najeeb Ahmed Khan Warsi, chief business officer at Al-Habib Capital Market Private Limited, said the surge was driven by “liquidity influx, positive listed company results and supportive government policies.”
