Altaf Hamid Rao.
MIRPUR (AJK), (Parliament Times) : The 16th anniversary of the devastating earthquake, this day 16 years ago in 2005 was commemorated across Azad Jammu & Kashmir on Friday.
The anniversary was observed as the National Day for Raising Awareness about safety from natural calamities besides as ‘day of firmness and determination for reconstruction in memory of earthquake martyrs’ coupled with special prayers for the rest of the departed souls of the quake victims in eternal peace and to express complete solidarity and sympathies with the survivors of the history’s most worst natural catastrophe.
The 7.6 magnitude earthquake jolted Azad Kashmir and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at 8:52 am on the morning of October 8, 2005. Muzaffarabad, the regional capital, was ground-zero in the catastrophic temblor. The city and the entire region to Balakot was left virtually unrecognizable when the earth stopped shaking leaving over 82,000 people dead and thousands injured.
The devastating earthquake of October 8, 2005, had jolted Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) turning major part of the two adjoining regions into rubble.
Mirpur city of AJK observed the anniversary when it met the same fate in form of Sept. 24 devastating quake of moderate magnitude measuring 5.8 at Richter scale in year 2019 that had left at least 39 people dead and over 800 injured besides huge damaging of the buildings across Mirpur city and adjoining areas of Jatlaan leaving hundreds of thousands of the people shelter less badly affecting the daily life.
Our Special AJK Correspondent Altaf Hamid Rao reports from Mirpur that in Azad Jammu & Kashmir, the day dawned with special prayers for the martyrs of the earthquake. Prayers were also made for the liberation of the locked down bleeding vale of occupied Jammu and Kashmir from Indian subjugation.
Fateh Khawani and Quran Khawni were offered for thousands of victims of the calamity who lost their lives in the quake-hit Muzaffarabad and other parts of Azad Jammu Kashmir and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
In Mirpur division special functions were held to mark the day as the National Disaster Awareness Day with new pledge.
A walk of the children living in Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust Complex Mirpur was also taken out in Mirpur Friday to mark the deadly earthquake of October 08, 2005. The walk started from Mirpur Cricket stadium and ended at the same venue after passing through main Muhammad Shaheed Chowk and quid-e-Azam Chowk.
In Mirpur Cricket Stadium special prayer was offered for the martyrs of earthquake. Sirens were blown at 8.52 a.m and two minutes silence observed in the memory of the victims of the catastrophe. Orphan children and students of different schools and colleges participated.
Functions were held in Mirpur University of Science and Technology, girls and boys schools and colleges across Mirpur. Our representatives report similar functions from Bhember and Kotli districts of Mirpur division.
Central prayers ceremony was held at the State metropolis where AJK Prime Minister Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi laid floral wreath at the memorial of the martyrs in the capital town. The ministers and large number of local people attended the ceremony. One minute silence was observed at 08:52 this morning.
In his brief address on this occasion, the AJK Prime Minister paid rich tributes to the martyrs of the deadly catastrophe of October 08, 2005 earthquake. Niazi declared to complete the abandoned and incomplete public welfare projects in earthquake hit zone from the colossal Rs. 500 billion gigantic development package announced by the Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan, he added.
It may be added that the AJK government had identified about 8 thousand projects for the reconstruction work in the earthquake-hit areas in AJK, with a total investment of Rs. 210 billion. After 16 years down the line still a big portion of the projects in the earthquake hit zone are reportedly still lying incomplete reportedly due to the slackness and lack of interest by the immediate past Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider led PML (N) government of AJK.
Azad Jammu and Kashmir flag remained at half-mast on all public buildings of the state to mark the anniversary.
Children dwelling South Asia’s largest Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust (KORT) and Educational Complex Mirpur, who were fallen orphan and lost their parents in the devastative earthquake marched in the memory of their loved ones in Mirpur participating a major congregation.
Founder of the KORT Educational and Relief Trust Ch. Muhammad Akhtar and his associates – Ch. Muhammad Hanif and other city elite led the walk, The walk started from Quaid-e-Azam Cricket Stadium was also attended by students and other local people in large number.
Major ceremony to mark the day was held at AJK University ground in the capital city of Muzaffarabad, with the sign of deep rooted love and affection by the government and the people of Pakistan as well as the national and international NGO’s and brotherly foreign countries who contributed their exceptional share for the rebuilding and rehabilitation of the quake hit zone of AJK.
Participants laid the floral wreaths at the memorial monument of the martyrs of the deadly earthquake on this occasion paying rich tributes to the departed souls and other victims of the history’s worst catastrophe.
In Mirpur, a major ceremony was held at the Mirpur Cricket Stadium where Fateha Khawani was offered for the martyrs and one minute silence was observed in the mourning of the victims of the catastrophe.
The memorial ceremony to pray for the rest of the departed souls / the martyrs of the deadly earthquake at Mirpur Cricket Statdium was attended among others by the orphan children of the Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust (KORT), the abode of hundreds of the children who rendered orphan in the deadly catastrophe that jolted bulk of AJK turning the capital town in to rubble this day 16 years ago. Besides the students of various other local schools and colleges also attended the ceremony besides large number of people belonging to all walks of life.
Several of the mega Development Projects of public welfare have been completed in the AJK capital in the wake of the broad based phased plan to rehabilitate the AJK metropolis on latest grounds comprising modern civic and other infrastructural facilities.
Similar special ceremonies including walks for awareness, seminars and symposiums were also held in various parts of AJK including Mirpur, Kotli and Bhimber districts in the memory of the martyrs of the devastating quake which left over 80 thousand people dead and lakhs of others injured in Khyber Pakhtunkhawa and Azad Jammu & Kashmir.
The ceremonies were attended by the people representing all walks of life including social and political workers, lawyers, journalists and members of the business fraternity to pay glorious tributes to the victims of history’s worst catastrophe this day 16 years ago in 2005.