Boistan Bibi, a 54 year old widow with nine children who was made homeless in the Pakistan floods last August. © CARE / Tabinda Sadiq It’s been almost 6 months since deadly flood water played havoc with homes, schools, places of work, and left deep marks in the lives of millions. People who feared for their lives are still afraid of the sound of gushing water. The life they used to have cannot be brought back. They lost their long kept belongings, life savings, assets, livelihoods and above all, loved ones.
CARE Pakistan was among the first few organisations that started relief activities the day floods hit Khyber Patkhtoonkhwa.
Boistan Bibi, a 54 year old widow, is one of the 2000 families in the region who has received 50kg of seeds from CARE, enough for one acre of land. She has nine children and four of those are still between four and ten years of age. Two others are disabled. Only one son works a properly waged job – and even this is temporary.
Her husband died last year, but they still had their three bedroom house to provide a roof above their heads.
“That was all we had, no matter how tough the going gets, one knew that the roof is there and no one’s going to throw us out”. Says Boistan Bibi with a sigh. That house was for her not just a piece of land but also a home where she spent years with her late husband and brought up their children.
She is living in a relative’s house now, and saving every penny that her son, who works on daily wages, brings home. “He’s the only wage earner in the family. My other son who is an Imam in the mosque brings home wheat or rice only,” she explains.
It felt like no one ever lived there
Boistan has documents for her property, but now the land is empty of anything except a few rocks. “I was astonished to see a plain white land full of sand and rocks, it felt like no one ever lived there.” She intends go to the district office soon so she can secure demarcation of her land. Then she aims to build a new house. “Even if I give my children a one room house, I will die in peace”.
Ironically, after the floods good wheat production is now not expected this year due to delayed rain. The wheat grown in this region is usually kept for people’s own use. Asked what If there is very little wheat this year, Boistan replies “If it’s not wheat for us, it will be feed for her,” she points at her cow, “this is also family.”
“I am an illiterate woman, looking after eight children at this age, do you really think I will be able to build the house again? But I will keep on trying till my last breath, it’s my Faith in Almighty and the positivity that will help me get through.”
