LARKANA: Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) general secretary Dr Safdar Abbasi has wondered that no relief and rehabilitation activities by the federal or Sindh and Balochistan governments are visible in most parts of the provinces after the recent unprecedented rains and floods. Nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and welfare associations, however, were seen doing their level best to help out a huge number of internally displaced people (IDPs), he observed.

He said that the indifference on the part of Centre and the two governments towards victims in the two worst-hit provinces was quite uncalled for.

Mr Abbasi was speaking to the media in Warah town on Monday.

The masses displaced and rendered homeless by the natural calamity had been left to stay on roads under the open sky while the relief goods collected by governments were being stored in warehouses.

`The relief goods must have been distributed without any delay and discrimination to help IDPs survive,` he argued, addingthat the affected people also needed medical assistance. He pointed out that they would need proper shelters as winter was approaching.

`Leaving people in the lurch at this difficult time speaks of bad governance,` he said.

Dr Abbasi said starvation had crept into the disaster-hit areas where people had lost all their belongings and crops and were now braving serious economic, health, shelter and food issues.

The GDA leader noted that most of the IDPs were associated with the agriculture sector. The calamity had destroyed 70pc of farmlands disabling them to cultivate seasonal crops, he said.

He termed the situation `quite pathetic` where the question of rehabilitation of people and rebuilding of their houses could result in psychological issues.

Thehorriblesituationwarrantednational action, he said.

Dr Safdar Abbasi, who also heads the Larkana Awami Ittehad (LAI), spoke of feeble state of dams in Balochistan and irrigation of ficials` incompetence to save people`s settlements and crops.

He put a question that who should shoulder the responsibility after the devastation on a massive scale had occurred. `Of course those who have been ruling over Sindh and are currently sitting in Islamabad,` he remarked. He said Pir Pagara had opened the doors of his dargah to flood-af fected people but they needed extraordinary assis-tance for their huge number and heavy losses. He posed a question for treasury benches that why relief goods sent by other countries were being dumped in warehouses instead of being distributed among victims.

Commenting on GDA MPA Moazzam Abbasi`s resignation, he said his (the lawmaker`s) efforts to help marooned peoplewere not only opposed by the government but also blocked. He could not afford to see the pathetic picture of the flood-affected people in his constituency, therefore, he had chosen to step down, said Dr Abbasi. Even af ter limiting the MPA`s ef forts by rulers, he reached and served a big population in this difficult time, he added.