Karachi: Serving Details for 250 Families(~1300 Persons) at Manghopir

14th September, 2010

We placed our order on 13th of September, at a ration wholesaler shop situated around UP more area but the guy asked us to pick it up by 14th morning so that he can provide us the ration in 250 packages. As we were in a definite need of the separate ration packages so we agreed and the same guy arranged transportation for us as well to transport the packages to Manghopir area.

We reached  the place at around 4:PM, we spotted out a distribution spot where the representatives of these 250 families were present, the distribution took around 3 hours, we handed over the following ration package to each of 250 families:

§  Flour 10 KG – 250 Bags

§  Daal Chanaa 1 KG – 250 Bags

§  Ghee 1KG – 250 Bags

§  Rice 2.5 KG – 250 Bags

We are really thankful to our volunteers who assisted for the completion of this case, they remain on their toes from the assessment phase till the distribution phase. They asked us that they have also collected cash to help out the flood effected persons and they wanted to have a financial contribution for this case along with their physical contribution. We respected there gesture so for this case around 21% of the total amount spent was the one that was their collection.

Karachi: Verification at Manghopir

12th September, 2010 (Eid 2nd Day)

After receiving a confirmation that a brief list has been prepared for the IDPs at Manghopir, on the 2nd day of Eid we visited the place. At the place the registration was continued from Fajr timings and a list of around 263 families was present with the following information:

Person name
Fathers’Name
Pre-flood resident area
NIC number
Number of family members

After an scrutiny phase of the list and confirmation about the pre-flood resident area of the IDPs there, we decided to serve ration for ~250 families there. Our next step is to search for a ration vendor in a nearby location to Manghopir who can give us cheaper rates and quicker delivery.

Karachi: Need assessment at Manghopir

11th September, 2010 (Eid 1st day)

Eid Mubarak

As referred in the earlier relevant post, a team of our volunteers visited the Manghopir area for the need assessment of the IDPs that were reported to be present there. On Eid evening they visited the place and were able to meet the local contact of ours to have a discussion about the number of persons present there, their previous area from where they got displaced and the issues that they were facing.

They found out that the IDPs that are present there mostly belongs from Meharr and Khairpur Nathan Shah areas of Sind. They were referred to be scattered at various places in the Manghopir area including multiple surrounding Gothhs. Our local contact was asked to make a proper list of the people there in a family wise manner so that we may have a verification phase.

Now we would be waiting for the confirmation of the list availability so to start the verification phase there as per our defined protocol

In Snaps – Distribution @ Khokhrapar; Karachi

3rd September 2010

In Snaps - Dil Muhammad Goth, Gadaap Town; Karachi

2nd September 2010

Karachi: Serving Details at Khokarapar camp

3rd September 2010
We visited the place with our lady volunteer and after completing the verification, we provided the following ration supplies in the Khokhrapar camp

75KG Rice
150KG Flour
15 Liter Cooking Oil
10 Kg Daal Chana
5 Kg Daal Arhar
1KG Red Chili
1.5 Kg Tea
15 KG Sugar
2 KG Dry Milk

Karachi: Serving Details at Dil Muhammad Goth (Gadap Town)

2nd September 2010:

As referred in the related earlier posting, after confirming a list of 24 families comprising of ~150 people, we served the place after Iftar. We were able to do the purchasing from the nearby Malir market and the items were immediately transported to the destination. Here are the details of the supplies that were provided there:
Ration Supplies:

200 Kg Flour
100 Kg Rice
10 Kg Daal Chana
15 Kg Daal Masoor
25 Kg Ghhee
10 Kg Onions
25 Kg Sugar
5 Packs Salt
2.5 Kg Tea
5 Kg Powdered Milk
1Kg Red Chilly
20 Packs Match Box

Note: The cost for the ration supplies was paid by the same IT guy who referred us to this place, we tried to convince him to let us pay for this but his point was that he wanted to serve here himself but dont want to let the people know about it
Utensils Supplies:

3 Cooking Pots (Degchi) 2 Big 1 Medium
6 Tray (Thal) 2 sizes
24 Plastic Plates
3 Cooking Spoons
2 Jug
2 Knife
24 Plastic Glass
1 Chhalni
1 Set Chakla Belan
2 Roti Tawa

As they belong to the same village and had relationships with each other so we provided the number of utensils that may help them out in cooking their food in a combined manner

Thatta – Serving 450 families of Sujawal

Updates of 1st September 2010

We split ourselves in two teams, first team went straight to Sujawal to give ration tokens to 450 families so we can distribute packages peacefully. Our second team went to near by market to purchase 450 packages of ration, where each package contains following items:

1. Flour 10kg
2. Sugar 1.5kg
3. Daal Chana 1.5kg
4. Cooking Oil 1.5kg
5. Tea 200gm
6. Salt 1 Pack
7. Match Box 1 Pack

When we were loading and transporting these packages into trucks we got information from our team in Sujawal that a considerable number of families have gone and there are now remaining 255 families. We decided to use rest of the packages elsewhere and move towards Sujawal. But, unfortunately our truck stuck in the middle of the way and then came a dust storm, we tried hard to save the ration loaded in the truck and on a suggestion from Army people we moved all packages to nearby Thatta circuit. We decided to transport these packages to Sujawal next day insha’Allah and called it a day.

Thatta – Initial Assessment of Sujawal

Updates of 30th & 31st August 2010

We tried very hard to get security cover from either Army, Rangers or Police but failed to obtain such. While exploring area around Makli and Thatta, we identified a local network who helped us in our working in Sujawal area. So we started our assessment in this area and identified a total of ~ 450 families there. We will be insha’Allah serving those families tomorrow.

View Larger Map

Thatta – Serving 18 Families near Gujjo

Updates of 29th August 2010

While we were searching the area surrounding Makli and Thatta today, we identified some concentration on a mountain 2 – 3 km off highway after Gujjo. We went there and start assessment of the area. There were total 18 families and they came from Jati, Sindh. They were un served up till now and need ration on urgent basis. We went ASAP to near by market to arrange ration for these families on urgent basis. We arranged 18 packages each of them containing following items:

1. Flour 20kg
2. Daal Chana 1kg
3. Ghee 1kg
4. Sugar 1kg
5. Tea 100gm
6. Matchsticks 1 Pack
7. Salt 1 Pack

After purchasing, we loaded and transport these packages to the identified area and distribute them to those families.

Makli, Thatta – Initial Assessment

Updates of 28th August 2010

Travel to Makli and Thatta. Spent whole day in the assessing the surrounding areas. Try to locate any available local networks, NGOs, Government Institutions and Armed Forces who are involved in relief activities there. Army was conducting Rescue operations. There were almost 4 – 5 million people out there and security situation was worse because people are looting every caravan that came there to help them. Talked to Army, Rangers and Police but no one agree to escort or give cover for relief operations because people count was huge and they can not do any thing in case of any untoward incident.

View Larger Map

Karachi: Need assesment at Dil Muhammad Goth (Gadap Town)

2nd September 2010:

With a reference from a known IT guy we visited Dil Muhammad Goth (Gadap Town) to meet Mr. Ahmed and his family who have hosted people coming in from Goth Ghulam Muhammad Jamali, Tehsil Ghadakha & Tehsil Jafarabad Balochistan since past 15 days or so. There they claim to have hosted around ~130-150 people. While visiting there at the day time we saw lesser number of persons being physically present at the location than the claimed numbers. Upon asking about the rest of the people we were told that they went out in search of food towards their relatives, finding some work or even begging for food and clothes. They are kept in an empty plot surrounded by a boundary wall for which they will have to pay Rs. 1500 per month. They initially tried to get some place in the camps located nearby but authorities have refused them due to overload of occupancy. Random checking was done by asking for their NIC and asking for the people and talking to them.
Gender distribution wise there are around 35 men, 70 women and 60 children (including 8-10 infants). 4 of the women are pregnant. There was a girl who is disabled may be due to polio or something for which they were very concerned since she cannot go out with other kids to find food as well as there is an old women whom I believe is suffering from TB as she had problem in breathing properly and had some bleeding while cough. Also 3 days ago an elder man died due to illness in there.

Their immediate needs are: food/ration, cloth, bister (something to sleep on floor) and cooking & eating utensils/crockery. For water they use to get water from neighborhood and store it in a tank already built in the plot. Even if i consider the people being present there at the time of our visit the present items with them were short of their necessity.

Out team will be making list of people family wise with copies of NIC for record and authentication purpose when we visit again most probably on Friday or Saturday and see all of the claimed people gathered there for confirmation of head count before we commit or do any sort of help to them.

We will post updates on it once we are back from there.

Karachi: Need assessment at Khokarapar camp

1st September 2010:
By having information from an authentic source, on 1st September i.e. on Wednesday we went to Khokarapar - an interior area of Malir to meet Mr. Yaqoob who has hosted a few families with the help of his brothers. These people are from their home village Choth Jamali > Shah Bandar > Qadrino > Balti Village, please forgive me if the names are not pronounced correctly. There are 45 Women, 13 Kids, 8 Men in there. All are from respected Syed family of their area. Number of men is lesser since some of them stayed back at their hometown to look after the ruins of their property after the flood while some of them went back after leaving their family members at Karachi.
Main needs are food supplied (ration) since the person hosting is getting into financial problems after supporting the guests for over 15 days. The rest of the needed items like cooking utensils, crockery, floor beds and cloth are already provided by Mr.Yaqoob's family. Men are kept at Yaqoob's home with kids while the women are at his brother's home which is in the same vicinity.
Mr. Yaqoob works in a local textile mill and earns just over 8K a month so we can understand that he will be needing helping hand. Local NGOs and social workers had offered them to provide shelter and food ONLY if they agree to reside at local camp formed at madarsa or school. But they refused as they follow strict parda not willing to live at a mixed kind of camp and belong to a respected Syed family of their area, they wanted to move somewhere else instead of staying at the camp so they refused to enroll themselves with their pics etc. Also what information we have acquired from the same locality is that the camps are already overloaded also food and other facilities are now going bad in terms of timing, quality and quantity.

They have received another family of around ~35 people who are now placed at the house of another relative. The needs of these newly arrived people are not known right now but we have asked Mr. Yaqoob and his brother (Mr. Usman Ghani) that we need to find out about them as well. Since they follow strict parda and not even elder kids are allowed in the woman's area therefore we will be taking a lady volunteer with us time to visit the women area and verify a few things.

We will post the proceedings after visiting them once more at the weekend.

Khairpur – Transported remaining 2 trucks, on field Assessment and Departure

Updates of 25th of August 2010

Remaining two trucks carrying Kitchen Sets and Washing & Bath Soaps were unloaded in the district office of SRSO. We went with one of the assessment team instead of distribution teams today because former ones leave early and later ones leave late and we had to depart for Karachi in the evening. Once we came back from the assessment field, we pack up and check out to leave for Karachi. We will be followed by another team from Karachi in a couple of days time insha’Allah. In the mean while we have instructed the SRSO to continue their assessment and distribution of Kitchen Sets and Washing & Bath Soaps to needy families. We will get daily updates from them and our second team will join them to work on future projects very soon.

Images will be posted soon.

Khairpur – Assessment of affected families/people

Updates of 23rd of August 2010

We went with three different teams and assessed almost 140 – 170 families in Loung Faqir, Shadi Shaheed and Kot Diji. Out of these there were 35 – 40 families who need Kitchen Sets. We also got feedback directly from people that they need clothes and washing & bath soap on urgent basis. We respond to these urgent needs and immediately ordered washing and bath soaps and asked our packager/transporter to include 4 washing soaps and 2 bath soaps in each of the packages. We also initiate a campaign back in Karachi to collect, sort and package used and new clothes and send them to Khairpur as soon as possible.

On the other hand the vendor who committed us to transport all packaged items on our designated location requested more time from us and promised to deliver latest by 9:00 am on 24th of August 2010.