We live in the fear of floods

Endless agonising wait for Meghwar woman affected by floods in Sindh

Sidra Bukhari: “As another monsoon season adds to the anxiety of those still not recovered from the floods of the last year. We are fearful of what nature may have stored for us.

The havoc caused by the previous floods continues to haunt us. We haven’t even recovered from the floods of the last year,” said Bhagvanti Das, a 32-year-old Meghwar woman who used to make a decent living by crocheting handicrafts, colourful decorative art, and beautiful Sindhi rillies.

Das was living a normal life with her three children until the floods hit her community, washing away her handicraft collection as well as her mud house. She is not the only woman whose source of income has been impacted by the disastrous floods, but other poverty-stricken villagers suffered a similar fate. “I was left with nothing to sell in order to support my family as was the case with other women artisans in my village,” added Das.

On June, 2023 during a phone call between us, Bhavanti bemoaned, “We only received assistance once with household utensils and food provision which was only for the initial few days. Now, even after a year, we are still waiting to build our houses and resume work.” She lamented that the worry of future floods and the lack of proper planning to deal with the situation naturally fills us with fear of how we will survive if floods hit us again? Sindh has been the province hardest struck by floods, and district Sukkur is no exception as both rural and urban populations were devastated by the severe flooding last year that lasted from June to October 2022.

While many have recovered by reconstructing their houses, many more, particularly minority women artisans in Raich and Meghwar, UC Sangrar, 30km away from Tehsil Rohri and  45 km away north-east of district Sukkur, are still waiting for the essential aid for their resettlement.

Bhagvanti’s husband is a community worker. He said that we have approximately 70 houses of the Hindu caste Meghwar in our village. Some of our people built their houses with the help of family, and some received loans, but several are still waiting, he noted.

We never left our village because of the security concerns and out of worry that members of religious majority would not accept the presence of a religious minority like us. We resided in tents in our village, and we still have tent-like shelters on the property where our houses were once located. We had 50 to 70 tents or temporary shelters at the time of flooding, and some are still here, Das husband complained

 “We believe that as a minority, we are ignored in terms of aid and assistance for rebuilding our houses, whereas those in positions of power receive aid and proper care from NGOs and authorities.” When asked about rehabilitation assistance, Neena Kumari, a 39-year-old mother of four children, said “Our village is in a remote area surrounded by the very poor and marginalised sections of society.” Kumari’s husband who worked as a craftsman with another person from the same village earns nothing. Not being given alms and food because of religious beliefs we are made feel that we are not even considered human,  “Our children are embarrassed to beg, and they will not go for food if they are not invited anywhere, even if there is a food distribution in the name of religion,’ she related depressingly.

According to Chandrika Arti, a mother of two and a crocheted handicraft maker, explained that crafting is a long process that demands patience to create masterpieces. We are home-based workers and can produce work on a very small scale.

“We make things, store them in our mud homes, showcasing them when we get the chance in any exhibition or sometimes directly to the people directly with the help of middlemen who take their cuts off our already meager earnings. The floods took not only our stored crafts produced by working days and nights, our skilled masterpieces and our entire savings,” Arti explained her plight.

“We are not begging for money, but we need support to stand on our feet again for a respectable livelihood and a proper place to live without fear of another flood washing away hard work,” Arti

Arti added that many craftsmen and crafters in flood-ravaged Sindh, including religious minorities, have had the opportunity to display their work on platforms at the national level and have received recognition, but we are still waiting for similar opportunities and earning prospects.   Sindhi women artisans are desperately waiting for an opportunity to display their crafts in order to provide market access to the urban markets.

Nomad Gallery Islamabad Founder-Director Nageen Hyat said that many artisans and craftspersons in Sindh are from the Hindu Community who produce some wonderful handicrafts.

According to Hyat, various non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or government organizations (GOs) support people with water, collecting funds, healthcare, and economic empowerment.

Concerning the situation in Raichand Meghwar village, Hyat, who also raises funds for artisans via various activities in Islamabad, encouraged the relevant authorities and NGOs to step forward and provide relief to these people. According to Muhammed Dittal Kalhoro, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sindh Rural Support Organization (SRSO), the flood was exceedingly severe and affected around 30 million people in Sindh. Therefore, craftspeople, particularly women artisans, were also affected.

The CEO said SRSO has data of about 10,000 affected women artisans, but only a small number are assisted by SRSO with the help of donors, such as nearly 1,000 women through craft orders and limited support in the form of dry rations, etc. However, Kalhoro informed that the exact number of craft women may be more than 30,000.

Following the flood, the SRSO displayed these women’s craft products at high-end marketplaces like Ocean Mall Clifton and Dolmen Mall Clifton in Karachi. Both times revenue crossed Rs 3.5 million, allowing the SRSO to sell handicrafts valued more than Rs 15 million in eight months, providing significant assistance to rural flood-affected artisans.

More than 1000 artisans’ products, worth Rs10 million, were brought to the February 2023 craft show inaugurated by Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, adding that such events aim to provide greater financial opportunities for flood-affected women, Kalhoro added.

Dittal Kalhoro further stated that they have a storefront in Sukkur where regular sales are made, and the craftspeople of Raichand and Meghwar were given training in digital marketing and basic financial literacy, especially recording expenses and earnings.

The CEO expressed hope that these artisans will soon achieve higher levels of revenue through their craft, adding that “the problems are enormous, but these small helps are also available to assist flood-affected families”.

They had made significant progress, particularly in the last three years. They must work as a team and demonstrate to the world that they are capable of making wonders, he stressed.

Note: Names of the artisans have been changed to hide their identity as they were reluctant to share for fear of implications. 

All the pictures are representational