BAHAWALPUR: A young woman, carrying her infant daughter, allegedly committed suicide on Tuesday by throwing herself in front of a fast moving goods train, while the baby survived miraculously with some injuries.
Talking to Dawn on phone about the incident that occurred near Adam Wahan railway station on Bahawalpur-Lodhran section, the Rescue 1122 media coordinator said, quoting eyewitnesses, that the woman was seen going towards the tracks carrying the infant.
They said the woman, along with the baby, later identified as her daughter, threw herself on the tracks in front of an approaching goods train on its way to Karachi from Lahore.
As a result, the woman crushed to death under the wheels of the train, while her daughter fell near the tracks, suffering injuries.
Infant daughter survives
The infant was shifted by a Rescue 1122 team to the Lodhran District Headquarters Hospital, where she was admitted for treatment.
Meanwhile, on receipt of information about the incident, the family members of the deceased woman reached the scene and refused to give the body in police custody for autopsy.
They took the body back to their native M-97 village, Lodhran.
It is learnt that the woman took the extreme step because of frequent quarrels with her husband, Iqbal.
CLEAN VILLAGES: Punjab government has launched a programme aimed at keeping the villages clean and providing various other facilities to the rural areas’ residents in Bahawalpur and Lodhran districts.
The programme titled “Abb Dehat Chamkain Gaen”, was launched in a special inaugural function at Chak 12-BC on Yazman Road.
On the occasion, Deputy Commissioner Zaheer Anwar Jappa said the government has decided thaton the pattern of cities all the basic amenities, including sanitation, sewerage etc, will be provided to the villages as well.
He urged the locals to cooperate with the district administration to make this programme a success.
Local Government Deputy Director Khursheed Ahmed said sanitation work would be carried out in 749 villages of 88 union councils of the district under the programme.
He said each UC would be provided three sanitary workers and a watchman, in addition to necessary machinery and a loader rickshaw to collect solid waste.
He said that the UC office concerned would charge Rs100 as sanitation fee from each household in its jurisdiction for these services.
Meanwhile, Lodhran Deputy Commissioner Abdul Raouf Mahar also inaugurated the programme in UC-13, Adam Wahan.
In his address, the DC said the the government has decided that in future the revenue collected from a village would be utilised for the development of the same village.
He added that under the programme the residents would also be provided birth certificates, marriage and divorce registration facilities in their villages and they would not have to go to cities for the purpose.
He added that to improve the villages, the assistant commissioner concerned would constitute a committee of notables of the same area.
Published in Dawn, August 16th, 2023
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