Volunteer

Major parts of Thar Desert fall in Tharparkar and Umerkot Districts. The area is arid and semi arid, recurring droughts, quality and access to water are among major problems of area. Tharparkar is the largest district spread over an area of 47, 91,025 acres (19,637 sq kms) and population is about 1.4 million souls. Majority of inhabitants depend on rain fed agriculture and livestock. Umarkot is the gate way to Thar Desert. It exists at the border of barrage and...

As soon as news of emergency situation was received, local volunteers of Al-Khidmat Foundation Pakistan started relief operation that was led by Dr. Syed Tabassum Jaffri (President, Al-Khidmat Foundation Sindh) and Mr. Mir Muhammad Baledi (President, Al-Khidmat Foundation Tharparkar). On 7th March, Al-Khidmat Karachi’s volunteers and doctors, led by Mr. Manzar Aalam, took two trucks of aid to the affected regions. The aid consisted of 400 dry ration packets, 600 liters milk, 300 ton pack meat, 2 ambulances, 12 cartons of...

During the drought years, women and children suffer more. The Thari population is no longer able to survive the period of drought, despite working day and night; more than 90 percent of them find themselves in a cycle of bad debt to moneylenders from whom they have borrowed money at usurious rates. In addition there are some cultural and religious issues which makes the problem worse for some Tharis; the members of lower castes or ‘Shoodren’ are not allowed to...