US embassy cable - 05NEWDELHI7992

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 007992 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: AEMR, KISL, PTER, PGOV, EAID, PBTS, PK, IN, Earthquake 
SUBJECT: TFPK01: India Sitrep Oct. 14, 2005 
 
REF: NEW DEHLI 7880 
 
1.  The following is the final India sitrep of events 
related to the October 8 earthquake. 
 
2.  Death toll: Contradicting October 13 media reports of 
1400 dead, the Press Information Bureau (PIB) of the 
Government of India (GOI) reports 1178 civilians and 85 
Security Forces are dead in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) as of 
October 13. 
 
3.  Injured: As of late October 13, PIB reports 5886 
civilians injured and 16 Security Forces missing and 
presumed injured or dead. 
 
4.  Homeless: PIB reports 32,335 buildings destroyed, 
significantly less than media reports.  According to the 
October 13 "Indian Express," 42,000 houses have been 
destroyed and 73,450 partially damaged, affecting more than 
150,000 people. 
 
5.  Indian relief efforts for Pakistan: According to 
External Affairs Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna, India sent 
82 tons of relief materials by train to Pakistan late 
October 13.  These materials included 5,000 blankets, 370 
tents, five tons of plastic sheets and 12 tons of medicine. 
 
6.  USAID/OFDA: USAID's OFDA officer, in J&K since 
October 12, reported that relief efforts have not reached 
many villages.  Organized distribution of relief supplies is 
a problem; boxes of clothing and supplies were discarded on 
the road.  Travel is slow, military check points are 
prevalent, and some roads are blocked by debris. Tremors 
were felt during the nights of October 13 and 14. 
 
7.  USAID/New Delhi: Mission Director and Acting Mission 
Disaster Relief Officer met with J&K Commissioner in Delhi, 
Parvez Dewan, on October 13.  Dewan listed priority relief 
items, including individual and smaller family sized tents, 
tarpaulins, locally procured building materials, fortified 
biscuits, and technical assistance in earthquake resistance 
construction.  Water sanitation is also a concern, though 
Dewan felt that chlorine tablets and bleach would soon be 
provided through government channels. Dewan noted J&K has 
received enough blankets and bottled water; the area's 
primary need is construction materials, as construction must 
commence immediately before the coldest winter temperatures 
hamper the setting of cement.  USAID will pursue these 
requirements with NGO partners and existing Indian programs. 
 
8.   Military cooperation in J&K: Pakistani Military 
officials deny reports that Indian Security Forces on the 
Line of Control (LoC) helped Pakistani Security Forces 
rebuild a bunker collapsed in Pakistan-controlled territory 
on October 13.  On October 14, "The Hindu" quoted a Srinagar- 
based Army officer who reportedly clarified the earlier 
story, claiming, "Indian soldiers gave the (Pakistani) 
personnel some implements, with which they dug up earth, 
looking for survivors.  They retrieved some weapons and 
returned the tools." 
 
9.   Indian relief efforts in J&K: PIB on October 13 
reported relief operations by the military, Health Ministry 
and civil authorities have been streamlined at the Srinagar 
airport to reach the most badly affected areas of Baramulla, 
Poonch, Kupwara and Srinagar.  The military reports the 
rescue of 556 people and delivery of 468 tons of supplies by 
402 sorties flown by 12 helicopters and 32 aircraft 
 
10.  International aid and NGOs:  The International 
Committee for the Red Cross announced October 14 it was 
providing 50,000 blankets, 10,000 kitchen sets and 500 tents 
to the J&K branch of the Indian Red Cross Society. 
According to a BBC report of October 14, Indian 
representatives of Oxfam and the International Federation 
for Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have noted 
unsolicited donations for the J&K earthquake fall much below 
the immediate response to the December 26, 2004 Asian 
tsunami and the Gujarat earthquake of 2000. 
 
SIPDIS 
 
11.  Terrorism: An AFP media report of October 14 
indicates a female suicide bomber struck a major highway 
connecting Srinagar and Jammu moments before an army convoy 
passed; she may have been transporting explosives and 
ignited accidentally, or wired to ignite herself. AFP also 
reported Indian troops killed five more terrorists in gun 
battles in Poonch on October 13. 
12.  Politics: Reuters (October 14) quoted Yasin Malik, 
head of the separatist Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front, 
who contended the GOI had missed a "golden opportunity" to 
show its human face, and alleged most aid effort in J&K is 
homegrown.  Moulvi Abbas Anasari of the All Parties Hurriyat 
Conference (APHC) told Poloff, "You (U.S.) are doing so much 
for Pakistan, why not this side?  No one has gone beyond Uri 
and Tangdhar. You can do this through Red Cross/UNHCR." 
 
13.  Infrastructure: In a telephone conversation with 
Political Specialist, APHC Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq 
stated the magnitude of the disaster is so great 
professionals must handle relief work with the GOI's help. 
Moulvi Abbas Anasari of APHC requested the USG encourage 
India and Pakistan to reopen telephone connections that 
would allow those affected to speak to relatives on opposite 
sides of the Line of Control (LoC).  According to NDTV 
(October 14), 54 Indians were across the LoC when the 
earthquake struck October 8; of those, 7 have returned home 
via the Wagah-Attari border. 
 
BLAKE