PESHAWAR, Dec 20: Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) NWFP and Fata chapter officials claimed to have spent Rs123 million on relief activities both in the tribal areas and the Frontier province during the past one year.

The society’s Fata secretary, Tufail Ahmed, and media manager Khalid, while speaking at a press briefing said that the organisation had made strenuous efforts to minimise sufferings of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) for their rehabilitation.

They said that the society’s activities for the welfare of the victims of various natural disasters in these areas were also on record. Mr Tufail said that the society’s Fata chapter was established in May 2007, which played an active role in delivery of relief services. The society, he claimed had spent Rs25 million so far on the relief activities for welfare of the victims of natural disasters and IDPs in the province during the past one year.

The Fata chapter of the organisation, Mr Tufail said distributed goods worth Rs2 million among the victims of floods in Khyber Agency in June last year, while another Rs0.5 million had been spent on the rehabilitation of those who had fled from the restive Kurram Agency and migrated to Sadda from Parachinar.

He further said that the organisation had also spent Rs0.9 million on provision of relief goods to the people of Kurram, when the agency roads were closed.

Mr Tufail said that the organisation also provided its support to 267 families in Jamrud and Landi Kotal tehsils of Khyber Agency, affected from flashfloods in September and spent Rs0.9 million on the relief effort.

He said that their volunteers provided relief items to around 587 internally displaced families from Bajaur in the Mardan, Swabi and Peshawar districts. Mr Tufail said that 400 blankets were also distributed among IDPs in Nowshera and Charsadda camps adding 2,355 blankets were also distributed among IDPs in Shaikh Yasin Camp in Mardan.

He said a medical camp provided treatment to more than 7,000 people in the same camp adding the provincial Red Crescent was providing support to 223 families in the restive Swat district.

About the ongoing programmes, Mr Khalid said that work on 19 projects of the organisation was continuing in the earthquake-hit areas, where building of a school had recently been completed and was handed over to the education department, while work on another in Mansehra was about to complete.

The society, Mr Khalid said was supporting around 8,000 internally displaced families in the province. He said that the organisation had so far spent Rs98 million on rehabilitation and provision of relief to the people.

The relief activities, Mr Khalid said included provision of medical care, water and sanitation facilities to the IDPs in various camps across the province and also providing training to volunteers in disaster management.