The Holy Month of Ramadan commences – One 7.6 magnitude earthquake, one continent and hundreds of thousands shattered across South Asia. The quake hit Saturday at 8:50 a.m. (11:50 p.m. ET Friday, 0350 GMT), 5th day of Ramadan, 1426 A.H., 8th of October 2005. The quake was felt across a wide swath of South Asia from central Afghanistan to western Bangladesh. Its epicenter was about 60 miles northeast of Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad: Muzaffarabad (Capital of Pakistan administered Kashmir). It swayed buildings particularly in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) of Pakistan, but also in the capitals of three nations, with the damage spanning at least 250 miles from Jalalabad in Afghanistan to Srinagar in northern Indian territory. It was also felt in other major cities, including Islamabad and Lahore, India’s capital of New Delhi, as well as Uri in northern Indian territory and Chittagong city of Bangladesh. With an increasing death toll from 3,000 to 20,000 and now exceeding 30,000, this is definitely the worst disaster in Pakistan’s history. Rescuers struggled to reach remote, mountainous areas and stricken residents of a devastated city scavenged for food and gasoline, a day after the massive earthquake struck Pakistan and India, wiping out entire villages, in addition to having extreme negative implications on the nation’s infrastructure severing transportation links and knocking out power and water supply. For hours, aftershocks from the quake rippled across the region as rescue teams struggled to clear piles of debris in a desperate search for survivors. Hospitals evacuated quake victims, some hooked up to intravenous drips, onto their lawns, fearing tremors could cause more damage. As night fell, rain and hail disrupted the recovery effort. It goes without saying that a significant proportion of the student population at the University of Bridgeport is comprised of Pakistanis, many of whom have been in touch with friends and family back home over the phone and e-mail. On speaking to many Pakistani students at UB, it was evident that there were a mix of feedback and reactions, in terms, of affected Pakistanis and areas back home in Pakistan. While graduate students Muhammad Furqan Balouch and Ayesha Patel claimed all was well back in their respective hometowns, with all their relatives safe and sound, so did new, undergraduate, transfer student Andrea Neal. Muhmmad, Ayesha and Andrea have been in touch with their families back home in Pakistan and shared the pain of affected families in neighboring towns and cities and offered their condolences. However, the situation wasn’t pleasant for all Pakistani students at the University of Bridgeport. Graduate student Fahim Fareed of Mansehra, Pakistan had family and relatives that were worst affected in the Northern region of Pakistan. “My city was highly and worst affected. My immediate family left because they felt the tremor coming. Thank God it was daytime when the earthquake hit and that they were awake and felt the tremor. Otherwise, Mansehra is completely destroyed. Two schools in the locality were destructed killing approximately three hundred and fifty children in one school and eighty children in another,” said Fahim Fareed. Pakistani government officials, so far, have been playing an important role in rescue operations and in offering support in an efficient manner. Pakistan’s president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, flew Sunday over flattened towns along the northwest frontier and over Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, commanding numerous top officials to assist in rescue operations and ordering many army members to assist in rescuing earthquake victims from piles of debris throughout shattered localities in the NWFP region. Similarly, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz mentioned that a massive relief effort was underway, with the government working to set up temporary medical centers and evacuating the injured in helicopters. Moreover, speaking to a close-friend residing in Canada, Mansoor Talat Sultan, nephew of Major General Tahir Qazi of the Pakistani Army and nephew of Air Vice Marshall Ikram Bhatti of the Pakistani Air Force, it was evident that at a time like this, the Pakistanis are united and that there is strong collaboration among the different Pakistani forces. Air Vice Marshall Ikram Bhatti has flown over devastated regions, in order to have clear and detailed information and an evaluation of devastated areas. He has already called for “all-out-help” and deployed helicopter and transport resources and also mobilized several top ranking air-force officials and air-force members to offer humanitarian aid. Due to a lack of air-lift capacity in Pakistan, Air Vice Marshall Ikram Bhatti is also closely working with the Bush administration, which has already sent choppers to rural areas of Pakistan. Mansoor Talat Sultan’s grandfather, Mr. Nawaz Gill used to reside a few kilometers away from the shattered Margalla Towers complex, a 75 storey complex that has now been demolished to rubble, in Karachi, Pakistan. Though his home has been demolished, survivor Mr. Gill claims that the local police officers and policemen, deployed army soldiers and ground troops have been very cooperative. As a matter of fact, Mr. Nawaz Gill feels that had it not been for the dedicated civil servants of Pakistan yesterday, he would not be surviving today. “It is a national tragedy. The Worst Earthquake in recent Times” said Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan “Some of the towns have been flattened, so there’s nothing there,” said Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz. “It’s a test of the Pakistani’s people’s faith” said President Pervez Musharaf. While there is strong collaboration among Pakistani officials and the different forces, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has also appealed to the international community to send heavy-lift helicopters, as well as tents, blankets, medicine and “hundreds of millions of dollars” to help rebuild the infrastructure. In response, US President George W. Bush yesterday promised cash and eight helicopters to help with earthquake rescue and recovery. “Thousands of people have died, thousands are wounded, and the United States of America wants to help,” Bush said from the Oval Office. Bush said he called Musharraf and “told him that we want to help in any way we can.” Other nations offering assistance included Britain, Russia, China, Turkey, Japan, Germany and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Also, an eight-member UN team of top disaster coordination officials arrived in Islamabad yesterday to plan the global body’s response. Furthermore, in a show of solidarity, India offered assistance and condolences to its longtime rival, Pakistan. The neighbors, who are engaged in a peace process, have fought three wars since independence from British rule in 1947, two of them over the divided region of Kashmir that was devastated in the quake.
“While parts of India have also suffered from this unexpected natural disaster, we are prepared to extend any assistance with rescue and relief which you may deem appropriate,” Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said in a message to Pakistan’s President Gen. Pervez Musharraf. Sonia Gandhi, head of India’s ruling alliance also flew to Uri to reassure the people of Uri that they were doing everything within their abilities to help the affected regions of India, mainly along side of the Line of Control dividing the disputed Himalayan region. The death toll in India is expected to have at least reached 650, injuring more than 900.
Furthermore, celebrities and others in Pakistan have been acting as strong activists, not only offering humanitarian aid, but financial aid as well. Popular singer, Shehzad Roy, also famously known for his prolific work as a philanthropist and president of Zindagi Trust is also offering donations for victims of the Earthquake. Zindagi Trust, which primarily aims to provide basic needs and education for the under-privileged children of Pakistan, is also accepting donations from citizens all-over the world and has set up stations all over the world, including the U.S. and Canada. On contacting Samra Muslim, Deputy General Manager of Zindagi Trust in Karachi, Pakistan, I was also informed that Zindagi Trust is accepting donations: Online, via: Zindagitrust.org and Cheques and money orders payable to “Zindagi Trust.” Muslim Commercial Bank. A/C # 004201010031029 and Askari Commercial Bank A/C # 19010102347-2. Checks and money orders can be sent to Zindagi Trust’s branch in U.S.A.: 9406 Wickham Way, Orlando Florida, 32836 USA
At a distressed time like this, officials on opposite sides of the Line of Control (LOC) of Pakistan and India are collaborating with each other and cooperating in relief operations. While earlier during the year Mr. Manmohan Singh and General Pervez Musharaf held common grounds on the issue of not having borders, this is the best time to implement on such a common belief. Officials in both countries have done more than exchange bilateral talks, and Gujarat’s chief minister of India, Narendra Modi, has offered to send search and rescue teams to Pakistan.
While adversities do not necessarily provide final solutions they do provide a different template to think about complex problems. The earthquake should definitely serve as a wake-up call to both Pakistan and India and serve as a common enemy for both nations to share and to work together on. Their cooperation and work should also serve as a platform to reconcile their past differences. You too can make a difference. Come care, come share, and step forward and make a donation through Zindagi Trust in the aforementioned ways. If you have any further questions you can contact me via e-mail: stalukde@bridgeport.edu or
Fahim Fareed via e-mail: fahimf@bridgeport.edu.
University of Bridgeport
Tuesday, July 15, 2025