Kashmir Orphan Relief Trust (KORT) hosted their last of nine fundraising dinners in Dewsbury on 9th July after eight successful nights throughout England to help raise money for a new state-of-the-art hospital in Jorian, Mirpur. The event saw the biggest single donation given to KORT by One Nation, a Muslim Islamic Charity based in the UK.

The previous dinners were in Peterborough, Leeds, Bradford, Oldham, Derby, Luton, Birmingham and Slough. The event in Dewsbury was held at Aziz Banqueting, and a mixture of people from Kashmir and Pakistan attended, as well as numerous businesspeople from organisations local to the community. 

KORT’s Jorian Hospital Project is developing a hospital and on-site educational facilities, addressing the region’s need for free, accessible, and quality healthcare services for the poor and needy. 

Chaudhry Mohammed Akhtar, Founder and Chairman of KORT, said: “In an unprecedented show of support for KORT, the UK’s Kashmiri and Pakistani communities have recently donated very generously towards the £32 million free healthcare project in the Mirpur District.

“I’m eternally grateful to One Nation for their generous donation, which has historically become the largest single sum donated ever to KORT. We also extend our gratitude to the Magic Wishing Well, another UK-registered charity, for their contribution and support for KORT. 

“The KORT management team would like to thank local MusKORTeer Rashad Khan, local Trustee Rashid Bashir, and the Dewsbury KORT team Zulfiqar Nazir, Tahir Ayub, Masood Akhtar and Haleem Akbar for their hard work and efforts to deliver such a hugely successful event. 

“We would also like to thank our MusKORTeers up and down the country for their help and support in all of its nine fundraising events held in the last couple of weeks, and, of course, our Media Partners Asian Express, who’ve done a wonderful job in highlighting the success of our recent fundraising efforts. 

“The support our Kashmiri brothers and sisters in the UK have shown in recent days towards our Jorian Hospital Project is a testament to how invested they are in their home region.”

Akthar’s and KORT’s journey started nearly two decades ago after the devastating 2005 earthquake decimated Kashmir and Pakistan. Witnessing the earthquakes and their ruined lives, Akhtar felt obliged to aid those in need, especially the orphaned children in the region. KORT began by renting a building used as a sanctuary for children. 

Akhtar said: “Fuelled by a desire to provide even greater support, in 2008, I set out to build a new purpose facility that would redefine the concept of an orphanage. And I’m proud to say we’ve delivered educational and residential projects for over 1,500 children.  

“Such is the support and interest in the orphanage that each month we see around 2000 visitors who have the chance to tour the facilities, speak to the children and staff, witness first-hand the provisions we have for the educational and social care of these vulnerable children.” 

But now, KORT has a new and determined mission that will redefine healthcare, industry training, and education.