Everyday Edhis.

Byline: Zarrar Khuhro

LET'S take a break from the usual doom-mongering (however justified) and cynicism (however easily it comes) to celebrate the good among us. With an extreme winter upon us, thousands across the country are suffering and when heavy snows forced the Quetta-Zhob highway to shut down, hundreds of cars were left stranded in the freezing cold.

With overtaxed government rescue services not yet at the scene, these passengers faced an uncertain fate and many may have ended up badly had it not been for a local hero named Suleman Khan. Hailing from Kuchlak, this young man went out in his land cruiser with his brother Noman and, armed with a tow cable and courage, set out to rescue those trapped in the snow.

Over 100 people have been saved by Suleman, his brother and their SUV, and many of those were ferried to his own house where they were kept warm and fed. There was a system in place, and Suleman prioritised rescuing pregnant women, elderly people, children and patients.

For those who were capable of making it on their own, Suleman simply towed their cars out of the deep snow and even gave them money for fuel out of his own pocket.

Over 100 people have been saved by Suleman, his brother and their SUV.

He wasn't the only one running a volunteer rescue service, as Anis Khan of Killa Saifullah also did the same, driving up and down the highway with 10 of his friends delivering food to stranded drivers and passengers, and ferrying families to their homes where they would be provided meals while they waited for the roads to clear. As Suleman got the bulk of media attention, he was invited to the Balochistan Chief Minister House to be praised by Chief Minister Jam Kamal, and one hopes that Anis Khan will also receive similar recognition for his efforts.

But praise isn't why they did this, and when I asked Suleman what his motivation was, he simply replied that he had been taught as a child that helping those in need was his religious and moral duty. Anis Khan says the same: 'We are serving people for the sake of Allah ...We do not need any fame.'

They aren't the only everyday Edhis out there. Back in 2013, when bomb blasts took place almost every day and the greatest brunt was born by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, I came across a story about a (then) 27-year-old rickshaw driver in Peshawar named Shakirullah. While he would spend his day plying his trade, whenever he heard an explosion he would ask his passengers to get off and would rush to the...