Every day in almost every newspaper there is news about children dying in Thar. The counts vary from 2 to 4 children every day. On a few days they even go up to 9 to 11 children. On the contrary, almost no newspaper seems to be carrying any news about policies being implemented or actions being taken by the government to resolve the issue.
A recent headline in a leading newspaper read “Thar famine claims 219 lives in 80 days” the first part of which is enough to leave anyone shaken, yet no remedial steps are being taken. We have lost innocent lives in the Peshawar carnage and we continue to lose innocent lives in Thar.
I fail to understand how humanity works. Is losing two lives every day not worth the attention of the policymakers? Are deaths due to natural disasters acceptable? Is the number of lives lost the only criterion for a tragedy? Let us not forget that every life matters. Let us not wait for drastic unfortunate events to shake us into action. Let us not lose lives which can be saved by taking some measures. Let us not forget that what is a number to us in the newspaper is an end to dreams and hopes at a future for families of the affected. Let us not forget that every life not saved is a life taken by those who can and should do something about the situation but are not doing so.
I sincerely hope the relevant authorities look into this and take appropriate measures to save the valuable lives which are still amongst us.
MARIYA DADA
Karachi