Daily Times

PESHAWAR: The Pakistan Red Crescent has trained 1,590 students and law enforcers in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) aimed at educating them regarding life saving techniques during emergency and disaster situations.

The trainings are being conducted under first aid programme since February 2017 and the students of both public and private education institutions, seminaries, community members, Levy forces and Frontier Constabulary (FC) officials were trained, said the documents shared with media by First Aid Program PRC FATA in Peshawar yesterday.

It further informed that a total of 651 women out of 590 have been trained by the First Aid Program PRC Fata in Central, Lower and Upper Kurram Agency of the tribal belt.

The process of training more students and community members was still underway and additional tribesmen would be trained in forthcoming time, the documents stated.

First Aid Coordinator, Iftekhar Ahmad said that trainings were conducted in cooperation and collaboration with officials of agency education department, peace committees, political administration and local community members. He informed that all the relevant stakeholders extended their full patronage in this regard and they asked for arranging more training.

“As the targeted populations were students because they could understand the message and could also convey to other tribesmen as compared to aged persons,” he reasoned.

Owing to dilapidated law and order condition across FATA, the trainings aimed to build students capacity, enhance knowledge and also to get them involved in constructive activities to add to development of the militancy-hit-society, he argued.

While sharing his personal views with regard to First Aid activities, a member of peace committee from Upper Kurram, Asghar Jan, said they will fully support and assist the relevant officials of PRC FATA in holding trainings in mosques, markets and compounds. He also eulogised the programme under which women are also trained.

Ameena Jan, principal Government Girls High School No 2 Parachinar, praising the exercise, said most women get burn during cooking with hot water or warm oil and sometimes they cut their fingers with sharp knives. Therefore in such situation, the first aid knowledge and practice could play a leading role to minimize the risks and sufferings.

She praised techniques and practices adopted in first aid training despite using domestic formulas which are not beneficial in general. She also emphasised the need for holding more trainings to equip girls with skills and experience to help victims in emergency situation.

Published in Daily Times, July 23^rd 2017.