ISLAMABAD: Raheela Babar has been coming to the hospital for the last several days.

The 44-year-old from Jhelum district has been participating in the PAT sit-in along with her family for almost three weeks.

“I had to go to the Polyclinic hospital again today. What with this fever temperature and low blood pressure, it is becoming very difficult for me to stay out in the open.”

She said she had to eat rice twice a day and was feeling weak due to unavailability of a proper balanced diet.

“The doctor advised me to eat something else but it is very difficult to get a variety of food at the sit-in.”

Participants fed up with eating rice every day

Like Raheela, Saleem Ahmed, 35, a resident of Jhang district, has also been participating in the PAT sit-in since August 15.

“Though I am getting food regularly, it is difficult to eat the same thing every day.”

He said the hardships of the participants of the sit-in were increasing day by day due to the unhygienic environment.

“I have not taken a bath for three weeks because there is no proper place to wash oneself. I feel uncomfortable if I don’t bathe regularly,” he added.

Zafar Bokhari, 46, has come from Multan to take part in the PAT sit-in.

“I am a human being and it is not possible to eat only rice,” he said.

Zafar also said he had been feeling exhausted in the last a couple of days because his energy level was very low due to the lack of proper diet.

He said he was a schoolteacher in his native town and was receiving phone calls from his principal to return to duty as schools have already opened in Punjab.

Salma Shafi, 22, a resident of Lahore, is also a follower of the PAT chief and has been with the marchers for the last three weeks.

“We are just given rice every day. Sometimes I don’t eat and feel very hungry all day.”

She said her mother was suffering from muscle pains, adding it was difficult for the participants to continue their struggle against the government under such difficult circumstances.

Salma also said she felt tired all the time because it was difficult to sleep on the grass under the open sky.

When contacted, a spokesman for PAT told Dawn that it was difficult for the party to arrange a variety of food for the participants.

“The leadership believes that food should be distributed among the participants of the sit-in to continue the struggle to bring a revolution in the country,” he added.

An employee of a food outlet in Blue Area said some followers of the PAT chief had contacted them to order rice boxes for the participants of the sit-in.

Medical specialist at the Polyclinic hospital, Dr Sharif Astori, said it was unfortunate that the participants were compelled to live in such an unhygienic environment.

He said hundreds of patients were approaching the hospital on a daily basis with the complaints of different diseases like gastro, high temperature, throat and chest infections.

“Eating rice on a daily basis causes different ailments such as low blood pressure, muscle pain, sugar problems and a lack of protein and energy,” he added.

He suggested that the government and philanthropists should set up medical camps at the sit-in venues to secure the human lives.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2014