ISLAMABAD (PR): A non-governmental organization Human Appeal, Int’l (Pak) has come up with a shocking revelation that a large number of Pakistanis get a chance to taste meat only on the occasion of Eid-ul-Azha which speaks of widespread poverty and deprivation in the country.
This was disclosed by Nisar Ahmad, Country Director Human Appeal, Int’l (HAI-Pak), in a press release issued here. According to him, the HAI this year distributed around 50 metric tons meat of sacrificial animals among poorest of the poor in various parts of the country.
As many as 55,000 people benefitted from the HAI initiative respectively in remote areas of Southern Punjab, Khyber Pakhtoonkhawa and Azad Kashmir. The beneficiaries of the initiative were selected in light of a survey conducted by a dedicated team of the organization. The beneficiaries were issued especial cards to ensure transparency and smooth delivery of the meat.
“More than 70 percent families who received meat confided that they were tasting meat after full one year and didn’t expect to get a hand on this luxury again until the next eid”, Nisar Ahmad added.
He further revealed that the HAI survey established that over 80 % livestock heads were badly under nourished and were kept, either owing to grinding poverty or lack of animal rights sensitization, in highly unhygienic conditions. In large cases, they are deliberately let loose to live on garbage and waste material which in the end leads to several health issues in the users of their meat.
The HAI is predetermined to raise this issue at every relevant forum that poverty has started threatening the social fabric of Pakistan badly and food crisis may not be a far cry if corrective measures were not taken sooner than later.
It needs to be recalled that the HAI is a UK based organization which works in humanitarian and developmental sectors in 26 countries of the world, including
Pakistan. It is running a number of income generation projects in remote areas of the country, including Azad Kashmir and has received official acknowledgment for its services on several occasions.
Apart from many other initiatives, currently it is engaged in a solar powered water project in Tharparkar which would ensure access of at least 30,000 people to safe drinking water in the area.
