The President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Jakob Kellenberger has said that every effort must be made to enable victims of the earthquake to remain in or close to their villages over the winter.
He made the statement on his arrival in Pakistan on Tuesday.
During his stay, Kellenberger will meet with Pakistan's President, General Pervez Musharraf, and visit ICRC operations in Azad Kashmir, an ICRC statement said.
"It is crucial to provide people with food and shelter so that they can survive the winger close to their homes," said the ICRC president.
"Some may have no choice but to move to lower valleys but we must help as many as possible to stay in their villages on nearby. Further disrupting community life would only increase the psychological trauma these people have endured and delay efforts to rebuild their live."
The ICRC is concentrating on providing shelter and medical assistance in Azad Kashmir. It is also distributing food and household supplies, helping to rehabilitate water-supply networks and striving to restore family links.
The ICRC president said that the organisation's operation in the region, run in co-operation with the Pakistan Red Crescent and supported by other Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, would continue throughout the winter into spring.
"The priority now," said President Kellenberger "is to save lives and protect livelihoods during the harsh winter months." ICRC medical teams are treating as many of the injured as they can on the spot, evacuating only the most serious cases by helicopter.
Adequate shelter in urgently needed not only for the population but also for what remains of the livestock and the harvest. "While attending to immediate needs, we must already look ahead to next spring" said Kellenberger, "when it should be possible to help people reduce their dependence on outside food deliveries, grow new crops and replenish their herds.
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