BPCA reconstructs way of life for impoverished Christians of Kasur

BPCA build large plinth and new brick homes for Christians previously living in mud homes. 

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During the first week of August 2015 there was extensive flooding in Kasur, Pakistan, caused by heavy rainfall and the callous opening of Indian dams into
the river Sutlej.  The inundation destroyed over 100 acres of crops in the locality and caused severe damage to several villages including Ganda
Singhwala and Bhikki vind, communities that the BPCA felt led to help.

On 8th August the BPCA team assessed the impact of the deluge on the Christian communities living in the area. We found poor health associated with general
lack of medical care, and the influx of stagnant water bringing the risk of water-borne illnesses, a major concern. We also prioritised the loss of
seven homes due to feeble structure and a lack of food due to the health and safety risk.  On previous visits we distributed
food packages (click here) and we also held the BPCA’s first ever outreach event, which was well attended. BPCA also set up a medical camp that was popular and extremely successful
resulting in many visitors from neighbouring towns, the majority of whom had never previously visited a medical professional before.(Click here)

Many of the regular residents of this beleaguered community had left the village due to fear of further flooding. The really desperate families faced with
famine and destitution had sadly decided to sell themselves into slavery just to survive, signing bonded labour contracts with local Muslim businessmen
who run the infamous and cruel brick kilns of Kasur. The loss of homes, entire possessions and mass illness had been demoralising for these residents
and our little early help was a source of great confidence, to a community desperate for assistance.   

In recent weeks your BPCA team has been busy helping seven families quite literally rebuild their lives.  We have been building brand new brick
homes and replacing shoddy infrastructure and making repairs to exisiting broken down mud houses.  The new homes will not only have a deep foundation
but a 3ft concrete plinth too, which will keep them above the existing flood level, so that future floods will neither destroy the homes nor allow
damage to the internal property or the valued possessions of the home owners.

    

Other families are also being helped with minor repairs to roofs, floors and walls. In particular a family living in a one roomed house had
repairs made to their floor. Boota Masih said: 

“The whole family is very thankful to BPCA for this generous support.  We didn’t have the finance to repair our room, and lost our annual income due to the crop devastation.  Our lives have not returned to normal but we are much more confident now.  We thank God for his blessings.”  

We are also working on a clean water project due the lack of a clean water pump in the area.  Two pumps have been installed to serve the community,
one in the courtyard of a home in which the owners have agreed to allow access to other residents, the other in the local community centre funded by
the local catholic church, which is also used as a worship centre.  Clean drinking water is a basic need for all and the lack of it in
this region is evidenced in the extremely poor health of locals. Many locals have suffered with ongoing problems with dysentery, dengue fever, and
malaria, and we hope our clean water facility will reduce these ailments significantly.

Naveed and proud residents with the new water pump  

A surprising result of this project was a discovery that young girls has been travelling miles away to freshwater streams to collect ostensibly clean water.
 The girls will have more free time on their hands and we are hoping to raise money to build a new school in the area that can serve the younger
generation of this particular community.   

Martha Bibi said:

“Now our daughters won’t have to go to a far place to get clean drinking water. We will have the water on our doorstep now and it is free of charge so
we can’t give enough thanks to BPCA for sharing such love and care for us. The water facility will change our lives in several ways. The water facility
took off burden and worry from our lives now, because now we know that everyone in the village will have clean drinking water”.

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