MIRPUR-AJK – The government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) is set to commemorate the 19th anniversary of the devastating earthquake that struck the region on October 8, 2005.
According to Divisional Chief PID, Javed Malik, the day will be observed as the National Disaster Awareness Day with various events and ceremonies planned across AJK to pay tribute to the victims and raise awareness about disaster preparedness.
The highlight of the commemoration will be a grand walk organized by the Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust (KORT) and the Educational Complex in Mirpur. The walk which will begin at 7 AM from the Quaid-e-Azam International Sports Stadium and culminate at the central Shaheed Chowk will feature children who were rendered orphaned and homeless by the 2005 earthquake.
A ceremony to pay rich tributes to the victims of the calamity will be held at the KORT complex in Akhterabad in the evening. The event will be attended by dignitaries, including the AJK Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwar ul Haq as well as social workers, volunteers, philanthropists, journalists and heads of various institutions. Across AJK, special prayers will be offered in mosques during the Fajr (dawn) prayer and a two-minute silence will be observed at 8:52 AM, the time when the earthquake struck 19 years ago. The day will be observed as a public holiday throughout the state. The 2005 earthquake which measured 7.6 on the Richter scale left over 75,000 people dead and thousands more injured in AJK and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
