Case Study By Dr. Asif Mahmood Jah EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

[Shaukat Sajjad]

In the wake of this emergent need of drinking water, the teams of CHCS under the supervision of the undersigned embarked upon the task of digging of water wells for the people of Tharparkar and has been able to dig and complete more than 600 wells of fresh, sweet and hygienic water during the last 5 years. These water wells have gone a long way in improving the socioeconomic conditions of the people of Tharparkar in general and health of women and children in particular. These water wells on one hand are providing ample fresh, sweet and hygienic and drinking as well as useable water to the thousands of people and animals of Tharparkar on daily basis at their door steps and on the other hand, they have also provided livelihood to the hundreds of families of Thar involved in digging and construction of these water wells.
These water wells are also quenching the thirst of thousands of animals which are far more abundant than people in the Thar. Raising cattle, camels, sheep and goats is the mainstay of the local population. There are 4.6 million animals in Tharparkar, according to the official 2012 livestock census, accounting for 21% of nation’s total livestock. In view of the above, it was also important to provide drinking water to the animals also. CHCS has also built water troughs besides every well for the animals where herds of animals like cattle, animals and flocks of birds including beautiful peacocks come regularly to quench their thirst.

Literally as well as figuratively, water is the basis of life. It is critical for survival of human, animal and plant life, sustainable development and environmental integrity. Safe drinking water is the foremost and most fundamental human need and is instrumental in alleviation of poverty and indispensable for human health and well-being. Some geographical regions are richly endowed with sources of water by Mother Nature, yet there are others, which are dry and availability of water is costly, requiring efforts for drilling. In the present day world, it is only the most backward and underdeveloped countries which are unable to provide this facility to all its inhabitants, no matter how remote, and no matter what the topography. This precious resource, which is taken for granted by the bulk of humanity, still remains scarce in some dry and sandy areas, which are prone to droughts and famines. As Benjamin Franklin said, when the well's dry, we know the worth of water…
The Tharparkar district, spreads over 22,000 square kilometers, is a chronically poor area with an estimated population of 1.5 million. Of these, 95 % live in around 2,200 villages. Thar is part of Pakistan which is often hit by drought as there are no rains over the years and shortage of water is the main concern which leads to malnutrition, disease and eventually culminating in death also as is evident from the news of deaths of infants/children every year. In Tharparkar, dug-wells have been found to be the only sustainable source of safe drinking water. Most of the time women and young girls are responsible for carrying water in Thar. Young children often have to forego their education due to responsibility of fetching water from water sources situated far and wide. Due to scarcity of water and non-existence of water resources in their own Goths (Villages) the women and young girls have to travel long distances daily to fetch water from far flung areas. During a normal day, villagers spend around four to six hours on average to fetch four to five pots (50 to 60 liters) of water from water sources, situated far and wide.
Tharparkar was hit by drought during the year 2014 and many children died due to malnutrition and disease. There was a great hue and cry during this period and many local and regional NOGs reached Tharparkar and held medical and relief camps for the people of Thar. The water shortage has been one of the main concerns of people of Thar and due to this other problems also came to surface. In this backdrop, the teams of Customs Health Care Society under the supervision of the undersigned also reached Tharparkar during June 2014 and held number of medical and relief camps in various parts of Tharparkar in which relief goods worth millions of rupees were distributed. Medical treatment was also provided to the hundreds of poor and needy people of Thar. During this period, wherever the teams of Customs Health Care Society (CHCS)(a non-government, non-profit, charitable organization)went in Tharparkar, the people of Tharparkar.
Water is the driver of Nature. (Leonardo da Vinci)