The past week has been one of the deadliest in the country’s history with over 1,100 killed in a matter of days.  On August 2, a senior leader of the MQM and sitting MPA, Raza Haider was shot dead along with his bodyguard while attending funeral prayers in Nazimabad.

Panic and chaos ensued, with rioting and violence across the city, killing 26 and injuring countless others. Over 150 people lost their lives in the Airblue plane crash in Islamabad while floods, following heavy rainfall, have wreaked havoc and devastation across the country.

“According to official sources, flooding caused by torrential monsoon rains has killed more than 1,100 people in Pakistan and affected up to 2.5 million people across the country in the past week,” the International Committee of the Red Cross said.

As rains are expected to continue throughout the country, the death toll is feared to increase while displacing millions of people across the country. Unfortunately, the northern areas (especially Charsadda, Nowshera, Swat and Shangla) have been most affected by the recent floods – areas that have already been under immense stress due to the ongoing war. With fears of a cholera outbreak in the flood-ravaged areas, the lives of over 2.5 million people are at stake.

The torrential monsoon rains have resulted in Pakistan’s worst floods in 80 years, triggering landslides, and sweeping away homes – the situation demands immediate attention. With predictions of even more rains in different parts of the country, especially Sindh, the least we can do is focus and build on an early flood-warning system that could help minimise the damage. Recently, it appears that we have been in a state of constant crisis. There is no question that the country desperately requires a sustainable disaster management system.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) lacks a pro-active approach and transparency, two of the most important elements required for disaster management. The 2005 Kashmir earthquake is a classic example of the calibre of work carried out by the state-run departments. Ironically, every other crisis that has followed has been dealt with in a similar fashion. We clearly lack strategy, credibility and infrastructure to deal with crises may it be natural disasters or civil unrest.

Although rescue and relief operations are underway for the flood victims, it seems to be struggling due to lack of resources. This is not a new phenomenon – disaster management remains one of the country’s weakest departments which is why the Army and the Air Force is often required to step in to help with the rescue efforts. The need for an established disaster management system with stronger infrastructure is extremely crucial for the country. Such a system or department requires capacity building and should be integrated with other disaster management networks (such as NGos and welfare organisations) in order to coordinate relief efforts.

Often, human rights organisations and various NGOs are the ones helping with the rescue. This results in duplication of efforts with multiple organisations working in the same areas. Not only does it prevent aid from reaching all affected areas but it also puts volunteers and donors in a dilemma – whom to trust while making their donations. Even though the military has the equipment and man-power to carry out relief operations, ideally they should only be assisting rescue operations in areas that are inaccessible by land.

We must take action before the grievances of the unattended victims are exploited and results in an even bigger catastrophe for the nation.

The views expressed by this blogger and in the following reader comments do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.