MITHI, SINDH: Pakistan’s southern region of Tharparkar in the Thar desert is facing an alarming rise in suicide cases, especially among women, with authorities linking the emerging health crisis to chronic mental illness in the impoverished district.
Between 2016 to 2020, the Sindh Mental Health Authority (SMHA), an arm of the provincial government, recorded 767 suicides in the southern Sindh province, of which the highest number, 79 cases, occurred in Tharparkar.
Tharparkar police data shows that at least 48 people — 31 women — have taken their own lives in the district since January this year.
Between June 11 and June 16 alone, eight suicide cases were registered in the region.
This month, the SMHA carried out what it called a “psychiatric autopsy” of the district to determine the “reasons behind suicides, including why more women were committing suicides,” the authority’s chairman Dr. Karim Khawaja, said.
“The results of the psychiatric autopsy will be available in the next few weeks,” he said. “It will reveal the real reasons for suicide cases and help in preventing suicides in Tharparkar.”
Baadal Saand, who heads the anti-suicide cell of the Tharparkar police, attributed a majority of the cases to “mental illness and depression.”
Dr. Bharat Kumar, the district’s only psychiatrist, said poverty “may be a vital reason” but the “mother reason” was psychiatric illness.
The UNDP’s Multidimensional Poverty Index for Pakistan reports that 87 percent of the population in the Thar desert region lives in poverty.
“Besides psychiatric illness and depression, other reasons are lack of family support or social support, or economic issues,” Kumar said.
Khatau Jani, a senior journalist from the region, concurred that rising mental illness in the region was caused by extreme poverty.
“These are extreme poverty-hit communities,” Jani said. “What Thar needs is increased funding from both federal and provincial government poverty reduction programs.”
Climate change is also driving locals into more deprivation as their livelihoods depend on rainfall in a drought-battered region.
A report published by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) in early June indicated that droughts persisting since October last year had resulted in increased food insecurity in a number of Sindh districts, including Tharpakar.
“Due to consistent deficiency of rainfall since October 2020, the moderate drought has been further intensified into severe drought especially in the southwestern Balochistan and southeastern Sindh,” the PDM said. “Drought conditions may further affect agriculture and livestock.”
Experts say modern agriculture could relieve the poverty-stricken area.
Dr. Amanullah Mahar, assistant professor at the Center for Environmental Science at the University of Sindh, recommended planting moringa trees, which flourish in arid and semiarid environments, and whose fruit pods can be consumed as food.
“Locals would not have to wait for rains for the production of moringa,” he said.
Another option was biosaline agriculture, Mahar said, a means of producing plants in saline-rich soil in arid, water-scarce locations. The method has already been tested in the district.
“Recently there was a successful experiment with biosaline agriculture in Tharparkar,” he said. “It is important to expand this agriculture pattern throughout the desert.”
In impoverished Pakistani desert region, an alarming rise in suicide cases
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In impoverished Pakistani desert region, an alarming rise in suicide cases
- Between 2016 to 2020, 79 out of the 767 suicide cases in Sindh province were reported in Tharparkar district
- At least 48 people — 31 women — have taken their own lives in the district since January this year
China rolls over $3.4 billion of commercial loans to Pakistan
- The IMF required Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves to be over $14 billion at the end of the current fiscal year on June 30
- Foreign loans, especially the Chinese ones, are critical to shoring up cash-strapped Pakistan’s low foreign exchange reserves
KARACHI: China has rolled over $3.4 billion in loans to Islamabad, which together with other recent commercial and multilateral lending will boost Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves to $14 billion, a finance ministry source said on Sunday.
Beijing rolled over $2.1 billion, which has been in Pakistan’s central bank’s reserves for the last three years, and refinanced another $1.3 billion commercial loan, which Islamabad had paid back two months ago, the source said.
Another $1 billion from Middle Eastern commercial banks and $500 million from multilateral financing have also been received, he said.
“This brings our reserves in line with the IMF target,” he said.
The loans, especially the Chinese ones, are critical to shoring up Pakistan’s low foreign reserves, which the IMF required to be over $14 billion at the end of the current fiscal year on June 30.
Pakistani authorities say that the country’s economy has stabilized through ongoing reforms under a $7 billion IMF bailout.
Security forces kill two ‘Indian-sponsored’ militants in restive Balochistan — Pakistani military
- Two militants were also apprehended during a security forces raid in Balochistan’s Duki district
- Pakistan and India often accuse each other of supporting militancy, a charge denied by either
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s security forces have killed two militants and arrested two others during an operation in the southwestern Balochistan province, the Pakistani military said on Sunday.
The intelligence-based operation was conducted in Balochistan’s Duki district on reported presence of militants, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military’s media wing.
The militants were killed in an intense exchange of fire during the operation.
“Weapons, ammunition and explosives were also recovered from the Indian-sponsored terrorists, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area,” the ISPR said.
“Sanitization operation is being conducted to eliminate any other terrorist found in the area.”
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but most impoverished province, has been the site of a long-running insurgency that has intensified in recent months, with separatist militants attacking security forces, government officials and installations and people from other provinces who they see as “outsiders.”
Islamabad accuses India of backing the separatists in Balochistan as well as religiously motivated militant groups, like the Pakistani Taliban, in its northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. India denies the allegations.
On Saturday, the Pakistani military said a suicide bomber rammed an explosive-laden car into a Pakistani military convoy near the Afghan border in the northwest, killing at least 13 soldiers, blaming New Delhi for the attack.
India’s ministry of external affairs said on Sunday it rejected the Pakistani military statement, seeking to blame India for Saturday’s attack in the North Waziristan district.
Pakistan and India, which often accuse each other of supporting militancy, last month traded missile, drone and artillery fire for four days over a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir. India accused Pakistan of backing the assault, an allegation denied by Islamabad.
Balochistan officials say Daesh involved in high-profile kidnapping, murder of schoolboy
- Muhammad Musawir Khan Kakar, who was from a family of gold traders, was kidnapped by armed men in Quetta on Nov. 15
- Balochistan government officials vow to arrest suspects involved in kidnapping and murder of 11-year-old schoolboy
ISLAMABAD: Senior officials of the Balochistan government this week said Daesh militants had abducted and murdered a schoolboy, whose kidnapping last year triggered a weeks-long protest in the province.
Eleven-year-old Muhammad Musawir Khan Kakar, a third-grade student, was kidnapped from a school van by unidentified armed men while on his way to school in Quetta on Nov. 15, 2024. His family said they had not received any ransom call from the kidnappers since his abduction.
Kakar's relatives and other protesters had staged a sit-in protest at Quetta’s Unity Square for 14 days after his abduction. They ended the protest after Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti met and assured them of setting up a team to recover the boy.
Kakar belonged to a prominent tribal family involved in the gold trading business in Balochistan for decades.
"I do not merely want to condemn the brutal manner in which Daesh terrorists martyred the innocent child Musawir Kakar for ransom—I consider it my responsibility to ensure that those involved in this incident are brought to justice," Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti wrote on social media platform X on Saturday.
Bugti said the provincial government had undertaken hectic efforts to recover Kakar over the past seven months.
"The entire state machinery has now been mobilized against those involved in this incident," he said.
Separately, Quetta Commissioner Hamza Shafqaat shared details of the incident. He said militants part of a Daesh cell operating from abroad had abducted the boy and demanded Rs3 billion [$10.58 million] as ransom, following which police and intelligence agencies launched a joint operation to recover him.
Shafqaat said six suspects were identified by law enforcers, out of which five were Afghan nationals and one was a Pakistani citizen.
The Quetta official said over 1,000 CCTV videos were analyzed while over 2,000 houses and 400 rented properties were searched. He added it was considered one of the largest search operations in which police, the Counterterrorism Department, Intelligence Bureau and Frontier Corps took part.
Shafqaat said the operation progressed to a key hideout where one Afghan suspect detonated himself while another was killed. In a separate operation, he said the other gang members were located.
"It was confirmed that the child had been martyred and was secretly buried," Shafqaat said. "The body was recovered, identified through DNA, and handed over to the family."
He said the provincial government was taking legal action against those involved in militant activities from across the border.
"Rest assured all of them will be arrested," he vowed.
Pakistan launches mobile app allowing power consumers to submit meter readings
- Users will be able to take pictures of their meter readings, upload them to the app and generate their own electricity bills
- Power Division says initiative will reduce menace of overbilling, incorrect readings and lessen consumer complaints
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday inaugurated a mobile application that allows power consumers in Pakistan to record and submit their meter readings themselves, with the government saying the initiative will introduce more transparency in the electricity system and reduce overbilling.
Electricity bills are generated in Pakistan every month by readings obtained from power meters installed at homes and businesses. These readings show the number of electricity units consumed during a monthly cycle and are taken by meter readers employed by power companies.
Pakistani power consumers have frequently complained of overbilling and incorrect readings taken by meter readers. To include power consumers in the process and to bring more transparency to the electricity system, the Power Division said it had launched the Power Smart App under the government’s “Apna Meter, Apni Reading” (Your Meter, Your Reading) slogan.
“And this app, this technology, this reform, is a revolutionary technological reform whose benefit will reach every consumer in every home,” Sharif told participants at the app’s launching ceremony.
He urged Energy Minister Sardar Awais Leghari and his ministry to strictly monitor the use of the app to ensure power consumers avail its benefits.
“I would want you to introduce this app to every home from Karachi to Peshawar,” the prime minister told the energy minister.
In a press release, the Power Division said consumers can use the app by taking a picture of their meter on a specified date and uploading the image to the app. Based on the picture, their monthly bill will be generated
Highlighting the features of the app, the Power Division said If both the consumer and the meter reader upload the readings, the lower reading will be used to generate the bill.
It further said that if the consumer submits a reading on a designated day, any reading taken by the meter reader after that date will not be accepted.
The Power Division pointed out that this method will prove beneficial for consumers eligible for power subsidies.
“For example, a consumer using up to 200 units typically receives a bill of around Rs2,330 but crossing just one additional unit results in the loss of subsidy, raising the bill to around Rs8,104,” the Power Division said.
“Through this app, it will be ensured that eligible consumers can timely submit readings and continue to benefit from subsidies.”
Pakistan has aggressively pursued reforms in its energy sector recently, which has long struggled with financial strain due to circular debt, power theft and transmission losses. These problems have led to blackouts and high electricity costs throughout the country, especially during the summers when demand peaks.
At least 31 killed, 43 injured in rain-related incidents across Pakistan since June 27
- Eighteen people killed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, seven in Sindh and six in Punjab, says NDMA report
- Disaster management authority forecasts rain with wind/thunderstorms over next 24 to 48 hours
ISLAMABAD: At least 31 people have been killed and 43 injured in total since June 27 in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Punjab and Sindh provinces, a report by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said this week.
Heavy rains have lashed Sindh, Punjab and KP provinces this week, raising water levels in rivers to alarming levels and triggering urban floods in some cities.
As per the NDMA’s report on Saturday, six people were killed in Punjab, 18 in KP and seven in Sindh from June 27 to 28. Punjab reported the largest number of injuries in the same period, 21, followed by Sindh with 16 and KP with six.
The NDMA has issued a series of impact-based weather alerts across the country, forecasting ongoing and intensified rain-wind/thunderstorms over the next 24 to 48 hours.
“Persistent heavy downpours are expected to overwhelm drainage systems in urban centers, leading to significant urban flooding, especially in low-lying areas,” the state-run Pakistan Television (PTV) said in a report, quoting the NDMA.
“Rapid and intense rainfall can trigger flash floods in local and seasonal streams, particularly in mountainous and hilly regions.”
SWAT RIVER DEATH TOLL SURGES TO 12
Separately, the death toll from drowning in the wake of flash flooding in Pakistan’s northwestern Swat River has climbed to 12, a leading emergency rescue service said on Sunday.
Flash flooding due to heavy rain caused the Swat River water to rise to dangerous levels at several locations across the mountainous valley on Friday, according to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Rescue 1122 emergency service.
Rescue 1122 KP spokesperson Bilal Faizi said on Friday a total of 16 people had been trapped in the floods, adding that three had been rescued.
“The body of Danial, who was from Mardan and lost his life in the Swat incident, has been recovered from the Charsadda,” Rescue 1122 said in a statement.
“With this recovery, the total number of confirmed deaths has risen to 12.”
Rescue 1122 said its teams were searching for a missing child from Sialkot who was also among those trapped in the floods.
State broadcaster Radio Pakistan said the deceased and missing persons belong to Pakistan’s Sialkot, Daska and Mardan cities.
Pakistan, home to over 240 million people, is considered one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change and faces extreme weather events with increasing frequency.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday directed the NDMA to enhance coordination with provinces and issue timely weather alerts to citizens via cellphone messages.
