Quake victims scramble for Pakistan tents

Of Pakistan’s three planeloads of tents and other stuff for daily use, several Pak-bashers have cornered the synthetic tents of excellent quality. Many of the tents have already been pitched in front of quake-hit houses, several of which are far from damaged. Official sources said that all the tents have been distributed.

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Tents are now the bone of contention in chilly Bhuj, where most people spend the nights out in the open. After Friday’s skirmish, the distribution was called off. Then district collector Kamal Dayani ordered that the tents be given away wardwise. The local councillor was called in to supervise and the names of the recipients were to be registered. Anil Mukim has now taken over as the district collector.

Official sources said 495 tents that were distributed were never put down in the records. Most, they said, went to influential people. Many of the tents sent by other countries and various state governments too have eluded official records. These were sent by air and road.

Officials produce conflicting figures when asked about the number of tents received. Most estimates run into four digits. State additional chief secretary L. Mansingh, in-charge of district relief operations, however, denied receiving a big consignment of tents.

Former Kutch Collector P.K. Parmar, who helps Mansingh, said only 400 tents from two states were received at first. The lot has been distributed. In all, 4,000 tents have been received.

According to an official survey, Parmar said, Kutch has 300,000 families. The quake has affected only 185,000 families. Many houses in the region are still habitable, so tents are, in fact, needed for only 100,000 families.

According to Parmar, the government is trying to procure 100,000 tents. Of these, 60,000 will be dispatched to villages and 40,000 to urban areas.