The earthquake which hit Balochistan received wide coverage. Dawn reports (October 31): “A strong earthquake struck various parts of northern and central Balochistan on Wednesday morning, killing over 200 people and injuring around 500 others. Hundreds of houses and government buildings were destroyed and over 15,000 people were rendered homeless”. Meanwhile, according to The News (October 31 ) “Relief and rescue operation gained momentum on Thursday in the earthquake-hit areas in Balochistan. Teams of the Army, the Frontier Corps (FC) and volunteers kept on providing relief assistance to the victims in the worst hit areas of Wam, Warchoom, Kan Bangla, Kan Depot, Gogi Tangi, Kach, Kawas, Ahmadoon and other parts of the province... Various political and nationalist parties were also taking part in the relief efforts ...The Pashtoonkhawa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), the Pakistan Muslim League-N, the ANP and the Jamaat-e-Islami have set up their relief camps and dispatched relief goods to the quake-hit parts of the province.

The News (October 31) reports: “International agencies are also helping in the rescue efforts. The United Nations agencies are stepping up efforts to assist the quake-affected people in Balochistan and address immediate needs, including access to food and water, health services and shelter, the world body said in a statement on Thursday.The World Health Organisation (WHO) is sending two truckloads of essential medicines and supplies for 50,000 people for three months to the most-affected districts of Ziarat and Pishin, the statement said”.

IMF to Pakistan’s rescue

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