On October 8, 2005, a massive earthquake devastated parts of northern Pakistan, India and Kashmir killing tens of thousands of people and leaving millions homeless. It prompted a huge fundraising drive in Bradford for charities which provided emergency relief of food, medicines and temporary shelter. But a year on, up to two million people are still living in tents and waiting for the rubble to be cleared as another winter approaches. Telegraph & Argus reporter SUNITA BHATTI finds out how much still needs to be done.

The earthquake, which measured 7.6 on the Richter scale, caused untold amounts of damage to northern Pakistan, India and even parts of Afghanistan.

The final death toll will never be known such is the remoteness of the area hit, but in Pakistan alone an estimated 73,000 men, women and children died.

One of the worst affected areas was Muzaffarabad and the surrounding areas of Kashmir, where many Bradford residents' families come from.

In the weeks following the earthquake people of all races in the district pulled together to give clothing, food and other emergency supplies to community centres, mosques and specialist organisations in Bradford like the Human Relief Foundation and Islamic Relief.

Many businesses joined the global appeal for help and the majority of the district's schools organised sponsored events and held collections.

The Human Relief Foundation (HRF), which is based in Claremont, Great Horton, Bradford, immediately put out an appeal to raise money to get urgent supplies to those survivors who had lost everything.

In the months that followed project co-ordinator Yousaf Razaq helped set up a thriving tent village for more than 2,000 survivors on the banks of the River Neelam.

However, when he returned to Kashmir recently he found the village abandoned as the Government had encouraged everyone to leave because of fears of flooding from the river.

Now he is focusing his efforts on providing earthquake-proof homes for 100 families.

He also revealed that walking around Muzaffarabad he was shocked to see that so little had been done.

"I couldn't believe it's been a year - it's still the same," said Mr Razaq.

"Many of the families, who had been living in our village, were sent back to their homes and they have simply pitched their tents around the rubble of their former homes.

"Some people are just going on with their lives. They say Let's carry on, let's make some money - we have to carry on' but there are people who are still frightened of another earthquake.

"It is going to be a long-term rehabilitation process."

He is urging people not to forget about the disaster and continue to support long-term efforts to help people rebuild their lives.

The charity is hoping to build at least 100 houses for families who have lost everything, as well as orphans, widows and those injured.

HRF is putting plans together to build a village of earthquake-proof houses that have been developed with support from Japanese architects.

Mr Razaq said: "These houses might cost more than some of the other charities' but they will last longer and families can be assured that if an earthquake does happen the walls of these properties will not collapse and cave inwards - they will fall outwards away from the people inside."

HRF has already allocated £20,000 to the project but it is hoping that with the support of the local community it will be able to raise another £60,000 to fund the scheme.

He said: "We have done fantastically well with the money that we have received so far but we have to put a roof over the heads of these people who have been displaced - housing is our number one priority.

"There's still a lot of work to be done but I am hoping that by the time I revisit the area in some six months' time we can see houses on the ground.

"I would love to see a whole community set up getting on with their lives, the men going out to work and the children going to school."

Islamic Relief, which has a collection centre in Carlisle Road, Manningham, Bradford, was filled to bursting this time last year with donations from all over Bradford and beyond.

The charity's response to the earthquake was its largest relief operation to date and a year on it is still helping people in the region.

Fundraising organiser Waseem Aslam said £300,000 alone was used to just help clear the roads of rubble so that aid could reach people living in the mountainous areas that had been cut off because of the earthquake.

The majority of the work that Islamic Relief has been able to do on the ground has been possible through the creation of Community Organisations (COs) to bring people together to discuss their problems and find ways of solving them.

Mr Aslam said: "Our work has focused on empowering communities by showing them how they can use their own skills and resources to meet their needs.

Before the earthquake, these groups had managed to build roads, bring running water to their homes, have better sanitation facilities and improve access to health care.

"When the earthquake happened, we mobilised these COs once again and supported them in rising to the challenge of rebuilding their lives.

"We provided skills training, essential resources and, where necessary, financial support.

"From training people in how to construct temporary shelters to helping them restart their businesses, we worked through local COs to help many people get back on their feet after the disaster."

Now Islamic Relief is working with the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund to support the reconstruction of 4,500 houses in the earthquake-affected areas and more than 1,900 local carpenters, plumbers, masons and electricians are being trained in how to built earthquake-resistant houses.

The charity is continuing to work to provide clean water, medical supplies and additional support to help survivors get businesses and communities running again.

Mosques across the Bradford district also became centres for people giving money and Bradford Council for Mosques has helped to support tent villages in Balakot and Bagh - two of the worst-affected areas.

The Council for Mosques handed over thousands of pounds to the charity Muslim Hands to provide shelter, food and emergency supplies for 500 families living in these areas.

Ishtiaq Ahmed, its information officer, said it was also urging people to continue to support the work of Muslim Hands and donate to the charity directly.

He said: "We are still working with Muslim Hands. Our main priority is to make sure that all the families have permanent homes to live in.

"We want to ensure that there is some sort of basic education for children too because many of the school buildings were destroyed in the earthquake and it's so important for the children to get back to as normal a routine as possible."

Bradford Council is also in the process of setting up a charity dedicated to helping survivors of the earthquake.

The Lord Mayor's Bradford Kashmir Earthquake Trust is awaiting the outcome of a bid to the Charity Commission for charitable status and officers are examining possible projects it can support.

The Council has already started raising money by selling ties and ribbons which have been specially designed as a symbol of solidarity with the devastated region.

Salman Mather, the Council's head of democratic services, said a fundraising event was planned for the end of the month which he hoped would raise thousands of pounds for the trust.

He estimated that by the time the trustees met in November £20,000 would be in the bank ready for the first project.

Many other projects have also been set up in the district to provide long-term help for the earthquake survivors.

An example is Victoria Primary School in Keighley which has joined forces with Radio Ramadan and the Sangat Centre to set up the Keighley Outreach in Pakistan Project (KOPP).

This group has been fundraising virtually non-stop over the past year to help support three schools in Kashmir and provide furniture and equipment for pupils and staff.

Representatives from the school are planning to visit the region in November and hand over all the money that has been raised.

But all concerned acknowledge that there is no short-term fix to the devastation caused by one of the world's worst natural disasters.

e-mail: sunita.bhatti@bradford.newsquest.co.uk

HOW YOU CAN HELP
  • To donate to the Human Relief Foundation telephone (01274) 392727 or go to www.hrf.co.uk
  • To donate to Islamic Relief telephone (0121) 622 0622.
  • Bradford Council will be selling ribbons and ties in its offices and in Tourist Information Centres around the district
  • For further details about the Keighley Outreach in Pakistan Project call Kay Lindley on (01535) 210110 or e-mail:kay@klindley.fsbusi ness.co.uk