Many victims of last October's earthquake in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province (NWFP) and Pakistani-administered Kashmir say they are growing increasingly angry at government delays in paying out compensation to help repair or rebuild homes.

Both areas affected have already seen angry protests over alleged delays in paying out the Rs 175,000 (US $2,966) promised in compensation by the government for owners of houses destroyed and the Rs 75,000 ($1,271) for those whose homes were damaged. 

An initial sum of Rs 25,000 ($400) was handed out to most victims in the first three months after the 7.6 quake that killed over 75,000 and rendered 3.5 homeless - although some families claim they have not received this amount. 
Angry street rallies in April were triggered by the announcement by the Earthquake Relief and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) that assistance inspection teams would make physical checks on houses before second instalments were paid. 

"I am still to receive the cheque for the Rs 175,000. I am told the inspection team came, but refused to hand over anything to my wife, as I was not home myself. I work in Islamabad and since we never know when the teams will come, it is impossible for me to be present at home," Asif Sarwar, 34, a domestic servant, told IRIN in the small town of Garhi Habibullah.
The town of some 50,000 people, located 165 km from Islamabad, was among the worst hit in the quake in Mansehra district. Today people everywhere can be seen rebuilding homes, or improving the structures they put up soon after the quake. "Many are using their own resources to do so because money has either not been paid or it is not enough," Asif said. 

While the Rs 25,000 given out as the first compensation was widely received, many families, uncertain of what it was intended for, used up much of the amount on buying food, clothes, medicines and other essential items in the chaotic days immediately after the quake. The next instalment has however, following demands made by donors, been linked to the survey of damaged homes and documentation of land ownership. 

"There are many complexities. Most of us simply do not have any papers to show ownership. We do not even have national identity cards. What we had is buried with our homes and has now probably been destroyed by snow and rain," said Abdul Qayyum, 68, from the village of Batora, near Garhi Habibullah. He says that both his house and that of his son fell in the quake, and they are still to receive compensation payments. 

Qayyum also claims the initial cheques of $400 given out after the quake to some villagers "bounced in the banks". Meanwhile, even the ones who have received the full payment complain about difficulties in obtaining money from banks - usually located in towns that may not be easy to access from some villages. The fact that banks are open only for relatively short working hours during the morning has added to difficulties in accessing funds. 

"In January, I stood in a bank queue in Battagram for a whole day, in snow and wind, and then the bank closed. I slept out in the open overnight and queued again the next day to receive my paltry sum of Rs 25,000," Amjad Khan, from the Allai area, said. 

ERRA has denied negligence and has said the reconstruction phase was continuing smoothly. "Those who have not received cheques should submit claims with the local Assistant Coordination Officers (ACOs). 
"After verification, all those affected will be paid and those who did not get the initial instalment of Rs 25,000 will now be paid Rs 100,000 ($1,694)", the deputy chairman of ERRA, Lt-Gen Nadeem Ahmed, said in Islamabad when asked about the complaints. 

Lt-Gen Nadeem, during a visit to Muzaffarabad a few weeks ago, has also said that ERRA was ensuring that "all houses are seismically resistant and 11 reconstruction training centres will provide guidance to people." In Garhi Habibullah, people are making attempts to build more safely. Some say they have picked up tips provided at workshops run in their areas or from visiting military teams. 

But people still say it is the delays in paying out compensation that is the main hurdle. Even as some new homes are built, other families continue to wait to begin their construction, with the levels of unrest and impatience growing which each day that goes by.