Rivers, Rebuilding and Resilience: Contacting an NGO in Muzaffarabad

Muzaffarabad, the capital of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, stands where the Neelum river joins the Jhelum, with houses climbing steep green hillsides on every side. The city was almost flattened by the October 2005 earthquake and rebuilt over the following years, but many households never fully recovered what they lost. For people here and in the villages of the district, a search for an NGO in Muzaffarabad is often about a present-day problem: a bill, a debt, a court case or a child’s education.

Peace and Humanity Welfare Organization (PHWO) accepts such requests, yet PHWO keeps no premises and employs nobody anywhere in Azad Kashmir. Its one office is in Larkana, Sindh. From Muzaffarabad you contact PHWO through its website, through Message PHWO in a free PHWO account, or through a volunteer, and there is no charge for anything. Volunteers review each application carefully; assistance is set up if the need is verified and can be met, and no one can be promised a result.

Muzaffarabad in the 2023 Census

Muzaffarabad District counted 703,661 people in 2023, of whom about 174,500 lived in urban areas and the rest in rural villages, according to the AJ&K Planning and Development Department’s AJK at a Glance 2025, which reproduces Census figures. That was up from about 651,000 in 2017. The whole of Azad Kashmir had 4,333,467 residents.

Urdu is used in offices and schools, while at home families speak Pahari, Hindko, Kashmiri or Gojri, depending on where they come from.

What still weighs on households here

The 2005 earthquake killed tens of thousands of people across Kashmir and northern Pakistan (ReliefWeb record of the 2005 earthquake). Families that lost a breadwinner, or who still care for someone injured that day, often carry the effects decades later. New homes were built, but some were paid for with loans.

Today, jobs in the city are limited mostly to government service, shops, transport and construction. In the monsoon, landslides block roads and damage houses on the slopes, and in winter the cost of heating climbs. Families from the Neelum and Leepa valleys who have moved to the city for safety or work also look for support.

Across Pakistan, the three most common reasons people contact PHWO are running out of food, being in debt, and lacking a device for college or a job. In Muzaffarabad, the third is a common story: students at the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, or young people learning online skills, often share one old phone between several siblings. Without a proper device, online classes, job portals and freelancing platforms stay out of reach, and the only option left is to move to Rawalpindi or Lahore in search of labour.

How to reach an NGO in Muzaffarabad when there is no local office

Open Request help on your phone or computer, or message PHWO from your free PHWO account. Write about your household, its income and exactly what help you need. Add a live photo of yourself. If you have hospital papers, school fee slips or proof of a loan, attach them too.

A volunteer might contact you to confirm certain points. Take your time and answer honestly. Nobody in Muzaffarabad, or anywhere else, may ask you for a fee on PHWO’s behalf, because the organisation never charges one.

Family cases and the courts in Muzaffarabad

Azad Kashmir has its own judiciary. The district courts in Muzaffarabad handle civil, criminal and family matters, while the AJ&K High Court and the Supreme Court of AJ&K, both based in the city, hear appeals. PHWO’s Free legal aid puts people in touch with volunteer advocates, and most of those who use it have family problems such as khula, dower, maintenance and custody.

Nobody has to show an FIR first. Say straight away if the children’s custody is at stake or a court date is near, so that your papers can be read early. Whether a volunteer can argue your case in court is never certain.

Useful services in Muzaffarabad

• Abbas Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS) and CMH Muzaffarabad, the city’s main hospitals.
• 15 for police emergencies.
• The BISP office Muzaffarabad for Kafaalat and educational stipends; SMS your CNIC to 8171 or see bisp.gov.pk.
• The AJ&K Government portal, listing departments including social welfare and zakat.
• The State Disaster Management Authority of AJK for landslide and flood warnings.
• The District Bar Association Muzaffarabad, for advocates.

Giving and volunteering from the capital

Government officers, traders and Kashmiri families living abroad can support needy households through Donate, giving money or goods. Zakat and Sadaqah sent through PHWO reach deserving people without deduction, and before giving you can use the Zakat calculator to reckon your zakat on gold, savings and business stock.

Advocates in Muzaffarabad are the volunteers PHWO needs most, together with fundraisers in Pakistan and overseas. Sign up on Volunteer and receive a certificate, a letter of appreciation and an experience letter. Parents hoping to arrange a marriage for a son or daughter can also use the Rishta Desk, which is free, open to all faiths, and each profile is checked with a live selfie and reviewed by PHWO staff; the families make every decision.

Public services in Muzaffarabad you can also use

• District Courts MuzaffarabadCivil, criminal and family cases
• AJ&K High CourtAppeals
• Abbas Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS)Main public teaching hospital
• CMH MuzaffarabadHospital
• PoliceDial 15
• BISP office MuzaffarabadSMS CNIC to 8171
• SDMA AJKDisaster warnings and relief

These are public or independent services, listed to help you. They are not part of PHWO.

Frequently asked questions