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Debris of collapsed schools leave tears in mother’s
eyes
Balakot—Tears roll down the cheeks of Ruksuma Bibi
as she narrates the panic that gripped her when she rushed out of
her home in search of her ten- year- old daughter Seema buried under
the debris of what was once a school building in this remote village
of Patlang in Balakot during the October 8, 2005 earthquake. “I
could hear her shouts for help, my motherhood was shredding to save
her; I even tried to turn the heavy stones up but I could not,”
Ruksuma said in mourning voice.
Later, eleven dead bodies including my daughter’s were recovered
from debris of the school, she continued in a subdued voice.
Seema was one of 18,000 children who died due to collapse of as many
as 8,000 schools during devastating earthquake in the North West
Frontier Province (NWFP) and in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), on
October 8, 2005. While, thousands of children had also suffered
injuries with many of them became handicap forerver. Government
Girls Primary School Patlang now runs in a tent makeshift donated by
an affectee women Marium, who lost her three daughters due to
collapse of schools and husband in house, respectively. Marium
herself lives in another tent house with her relatives while she
takes care of the orphan students who were deprived of their
parents.
“We all are happy for studying but; at the same time, we feel
miserable as we do not have basic facilities including water,
toilets or protection from bad weather here,” Neelum a fifth class
student remarked. The earthquake caused extensive damage to
education system, beside death of 900 teachers. In the eight most
affected districts of NWFP and AJK respectively, 46% and 96% school
buildings were damaged or destroyed, Assistant District Office
Education (ADEO) Mansehra Sarfraz Khan told APP.
He said 600 schools -each housing at least 300 students, were
destroyed in small town of Balakot. Resumption of education
activities was an uphill task as the trauma-hit children could not
speak even, Sarfraz recalled, adding “ we have had no books,
furniture or other infrastructure facilities.”—APP
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