Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan Saturday said that the harrowing memories of the deadly earthquake that shook AJK on October 8, 2005 were still fresh in the minds of the people. Addressing a ceremony managed to pay homage to the deadly earthquake victims in the State metropolis, the PM said that the way the Pakistani nation came forward to help the Kashmiri quake affectees was something unprecedented and unforgettable.
“The people of Pakistan opened their treasures and donated wholeheartedly to rebuild lives of the homeless quake-survivors”, he said adding that the international community’s generous support also proved handy to restore normal life in the quick-devastated areas of the state. While praying for the victims Prime Minister Azad Kashmir Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan said that a monument would be built in memory of the martyrs of the 2005 earthquake, in which national events would be held in future.
Terming death as an inescapable reality, the PM said, “Being Muslims we should always be prepared for death”. “Tragedies do happen so all that we need is the planning to deal with such natural calamities”, he said, adding that development of the state and securing the future of our next generations were his government’s top priorities. He said that there was a dire need for creating public awareness to cope with any natural calamity.
“Emergency kits should be mandatory in all government vehicles to avoid any accidents and training courses required to deal with natural calamities should be made mandatory in civil defense, schools, colleges”, he added. Addressing the ceremony Minister State Disaster Management Authority Chaudhry Akbar Ibrahim said that due to the terrible earthquake of October 8, 2005, millions of people were displaced and thousands of buildings collapsed in a few seconds. “The earthquake caused a loss of Rs 124 billion to infrastructure in Azad Kashmir”, he said adding that after this apocalyptic tragedy, the spirit with which the international community in general and the people of Pakistan.
