Islamabad: Islamabad has accepted $5 million (Dh18.3 million) in aid from India for flood victims, a rare expression of goodwill between the feuding neighbours at a time when Pakistan is reeling from one of its worst ever natural disasters.
The floods have affected about one-fifth of Pakistan's territory, straining its civilian government as it also struggles against Al Qaida and Taliban violence. At least 6 million people have been made homeless and the economic cost is expected to run into the billions.
Cholera
The head of the World Health Organisation in Pakistan said yesterday that there had been "sporadic cases" of cholera among 20 million people affected by the disaster, many of them living in crowded and unsanitary conditions.
But Guido Sabatinelli told reporters that "I am optimistic that there is no immediate threat of a cholera epidemic."
The United Nations has appealed for $460 million in emergency assistance.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmoud Qureshi told Indian NDTV television station that the government had accepted the money from India. Such is the difficult relationship the two nations have that it took several days for Islamabad to reach the decision. "It is highly appreciated in Pakistan and we have recognised it," he said in New York.
India's foreign office yesterday welcomed the decision to accept the aid, Press Trust of India reported, adding the government was willing to provide more assistance.
