MIRPUR (Kashmir English): Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry has said that all possible measures will continue to be taken to ensure the protection of life and property from every natural disaster in the region.
In a statement on the eve of 20th anniversary of October 8, 2005 deadly earthquake, falling today, the AJK President said that the devastating earthquake that struck Muzaffarabad, Bagh, and Poonch districts, as well as parts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province on October 8, 2005, claimed thousands of precious lives and caused massive destruction to both public and private property.
Recalling the tragic memories of the disaster, the President said, “Those who witnessed the devastation of this natural calamity with their own eyes will hardly ever forget it”.
He noted that while no effort can compensate for the loss of human lives, the government made every possible effort to meet the challenge of rehabilitation and reconstruction in the aftermath of the earthquake.
In his message on the occasion marking 20 years since the catastrophe, the President said that the tragic memories of those who lost their lives in the October 8, 2005 earthquake will remain intact in the minds.
On this occasion, the President expressed deep gratitude to the international community particularly the brotherly Islamic countries of Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates as well as the United States, the United Kingdom, European nations, and the People’s Republic of China for their generous assistance in relief, rescue, and rehabilitation efforts.
Unprecedented support by Pakistan’s armed forces
He said that the unprecedented support extended by Pakistan’s armed forces to the earthquake victims is an unforgettable chapter in history, and the people of Azad Jammu and Kashmir will always remember it with gratitude.
