Khawaja Zaheer Ahmed - PDMA

under a World Bank Project. It was noted that besides poor maintenance
during low flood/ dry seasons 4-5 years prior to 2010, diversions/
unauthorized structures within the pond areas, illegal farming in the river
beds and pond areas, encroachments and private zamindara bunds or
combination thereof contributed to induced structural failures, before the
arrival of peak waves. These were therefore, damaged as soon as water
approached the toe of the bunds, suffering from inattention and years of
neglect in dry seasons which exposed them to all potential risks
enumerated in the respective Flood Manuals or the PWD Code. These
SOPs dictated a certain degree of responsibility and extra attention during
extraordinary seasonal forecasts. These safety guidelines were not
followed in pre-flood phase; joint inspections by the local armed forces,
invited in aid of civil power did not materially affect the change beyond
routine visits. Everyone seemed contented with going through the paper
certifications.
37. As soon as rains began to show on ground, the vibrant electronic Media
that was vigorously preoccupied initially at not too distant Attabad Lake in Gilgit-
Baltistan, and then the Air-Blue tragedy in Islamabad, switched its focus to cover
the flood flows, wave- by-wave. It was the first ever major event of that
magnitude anywhere, after 2005 earthquake. Leading anchors, men and women,
rushed to the real stage, to witness live tragedies unfolding before their very eyes
with drenched feet to transmit as their national duty; they not only expressed
solidarity to the cause of the marooned, they created a niche as national
institutions of credible standing by sharing real- time footage of various events.
38. In Balochistan, the shock was so sudden and severe that Mr. Zafarullah
Khan Jamali, a former Prime Minister and resident of affected Jaffarabad District
joined the angry protestors, alleging, on live media, malafide political
manipulations by two Federal Ministers of Sindh and its local administration of
having vested mundane motives. He repeatedly reiterated the allegations in his
meeting with the incumbent Prime Minister in the presence of media personnel
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