By Shafique Khokhar
Apr 19 2021
Lack of water is a problem, especially for women who have to walk miles to get it. Along with the inauguration of a new pump, neem and berry were planted as part of Caritas Pakistan’s “One Million More Trees” campaign.
SINDH – Ahsas Raza Goth is a village in Sindh province. It had a water problem because its old submersible water pump was damaged and its new pump needed fixing. The community asked for help; Caritas Pakistan Karachi provided it.
For Raza Barkat, a 60-year-old resident of the village, the Catholic charity “restored our life; we lived in a dire situation without water, especially our children, and women were suffering due to the water problem, but now everyone in the village is happy with the availability of water. The submersible pump stands at the entrance to our village.”
A grateful Raza heartily thanked Caritas Pakistan Karachi on behalf of the village for responding to their request and providing the pump after a long period of hardship.
Due to the damage to the old pump and the breakdown of the pump installed by the Sindh government, which was the only source of water for the community and their livestock, residents were suffering badly, especially women who had to walk miles to get water to drink and cook.
Caritas Pakistan Karachi traditionally works with and for underprivileged communities through various community development programmes and by raising awareness. Water shortages for human use (drinking, cooking, etc) and agriculture (farming and livestock raisin) are a permanent problem
Yesterday, the Catholic charity finally came through with its WASH[*] initiatives in remote areas of Pakistan and replaced the defective pump in Ahsan Raza Goth, restoring residents’ only water supply.
Mansha Noor, executive secretary of the Caritas Pakistan Karachi, together with Amir Robin and John Rehmat (Caritas coordinator), visited Ahsan Raza Goth to meet the villagers and inaugurate the new pump.
Sporting a big smile along with village volunteers and Caritas staff, Mansha Noor pressed the button to activate the device. In his address, he expressed satisfaction with the result, noting that Caritas was aware of local water problems for some time and wanted to solve them, but could not due to a lack of resources.
“Thank God, somehow we were able to help you solve a major problem,” he said, congratulating the women and telling them that their problem was now over and that they did not have to go far to get water.
Amir Rubin congratulated the people of Ahsan Raza Goth and said the water will serve not only for drinking and cooking, but also for the livestock. He added that the submersible pump should be closely monitored or it could be damaged again.
To mark the day and as part of Caritas Pakistan’s “One Million More Trees” campaign, neem and berry were planted. – AsiaNews
