Karachi: A makeshift mega tent city will open in the suburbs of Karachi next week to accommodate thousands of flood victims who have come to the provincial capital after leaving their calamity-hit areas in the province.
The Sindh government is establishing the city on the land of the Malir Development Authority (MDA) and initially, 2,500 tents have been set up for the displaced.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah earlier told journalists that the plan to establish makeshift tent cities in Karachi and other cities of the province had been delayed due to a severe shortage of tents with the Provincial Disaster Management Authority.
Recently, Sindh Social Welfare Minister Mohammad Sajid Jokhio, Consul General of the UAE in Karachi Bakheet Ateeq Al Remeithi, Deputy Commissioner of District Malir Irfan Salam and other officials inspected the site of the city.
The Social Welfare Minister said the launch of the mega tent city showed well that Karachi wholeheartedly was willing to help out the fellow residents of the province who had to leave their native places due to the natural calamity.
He said that those who would be housed in the tent city would get the facilities of a mobile hospital, a tent school, a mosque, washrooms and clean drinking water.
Jokhio said that on the directives of the CM, he had been personally supervising the arrangements to establish the tent city.
He said that in the first stage the displaced flood victims who were sheltered at different government-run schools in Karachi would be relocated to the tent city. Later on, the facility will be open to the fresh arrival of flood victims.
He said the affected people could stay at the makeshift facility till they get their houses restored in their native areas.
He thanked the Consulate General of the UAE for providing an ambulance and other facilities for emergency medical treatment of the patients at the tent city.
The MDA on its part has been making sure that its land being spared for accommodating homeless flood victims shouldn’t be later illegally occupied by unscrupulous elements.
