From a Shortage of 3,600 Cinemas to 700,000 People Without a Hospital

Numbers and statistics sometimes carry astonishing realities. Radio Farda looks at the statistics that have recently been circulating in Iran: 300 villages in West Azerbaijan are being supplied with water using containers. On August 16, Hadi Bahadri, a representative of the Urmia Lake Revival Headquarters, stated that unfortunately, there is an illusion of water abundance in West Azerbaijan; some officials believe this province is still the second most water-rich province in the country, while 300 villages in the province are being supplied with water using containers. On August 17, Mahmoud Hojjati, the Minister of Agriculture, stated that Mazandaran and Gilan, the rainiest provinces in the country, are suffering from water scarcity, while annually, 10 billion cubic meters of surface water from these two provinces is wasted into the Caspian Sea. On August 18, according to the Ministry of Energy (Pavan), 780,000 illegal water and electricity connections exist in the country, resulting in 3.5% of unauthorized consumption. On August 18, Alireza Kakavand, the CEO of the Rural Water and Wastewater Company of Lorestan, announced that a water supply project for 30,000 rural households in the province will be inaugurated coinciding with Government Week. Currently, out of 2,853 villages with a population of 671,828, 1,554 villages have more than 20 households, and 1,434 of these villages have been supplied with water. On August 7, Gholamreza Aghamirzaei, the Secretary of the Coordination Council for Combating Drugs in Lorestan, reported the existence of 1,000 addicted women in the province, with a maximum of 100 of them being street addicts. On August 18, Hassan Aboulghasemi, the head of the 9th International Congress of the Iranian Society of Blood and Cancer in Children, stated that annually, 3,500 children under 15 are diagnosed with cancer, with 85% of childhood cancers being successfully treated. On August 17, it was reported that Lieutenant Amir Ahmadi, the deputy of the police station in Mohajeran, was praised for rejecting a bribe of 200 million rials from highway toll thieves. The toll money of 767 million rials was stolen two days prior during its transfer to the bank, and Lieutenant Ahmadi, along with his only accompanying soldier, managed to identify the thieves' vehicle during a checkpoint. They apprehended one of the thieves and recovered the stolen money. During the arrest, the thief attempted to bribe Lieutenant Ahmadi with four packages of 50 million rials from the stolen money, but he rejected the bribe. On August 16, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the first deputy of the judiciary, provided an update on the cases of Babak Zanjani, an accused currency offender, and Saeed Mortazavi, stating that the case is substantial, consisting of 209 volumes, each containing 200 pages, totaling about 40,000 pages, which lawyers must study before the court session on October 3. On August 17, Ahmad Medari, the Deputy Minister of Welfare, announced that currently, 40% of the workforce lacks social insurance. On August 18, Hojjatollah Ayubi, the head of the Cinema Organization, stated that Iranian cinema currently needs 4,000 cinema halls, while there are only 322 active halls. On August 18, Mehdi Mehrvar, the governor of Fardis in Tehran province, emphasized the urgency of starting the construction of a hospital for this city with a population of nearly 700,000, which currently lacks a hospital. On August 6, Ali Marashi, the head of the Medical Center for Hajj and Pilgrimage of the Red Crescent Society, announced that Red Crescent medical centers are operating in Najaf, Karbala, and Kazimayn, and that injured and Iraqi pilgrims are being sent to Iran for further treatment. He mentioned that the construction of a clinic in Karbala is on the agenda, and two ambulances have been purchased by the Iranian Red Crescent for use in Iraq. Regarding the establishment of a Red Crescent hospital in Najaf, he added that a building has been designated for the hospital, and its equipment will begin upon receiving government approval from Iraq. On August 16, Ayatollah Hosseini Bushehri, the head of the Coordination Council for the Commemoration of the Decade of Dignity, predicted that 400,000 ceremonies would be held this year during the Decade of Dignity. He added that this year, the 'Under the Shadow of the Sun' celebrations will take place in 200 cities within the country and 45 cities abroad to promote the culture of Razavi. He did not provide further details about the Decade of Dignity and the 'Under the Shadow of the Sun' celebrations. On August 18, it was reported that one of the national football players who participated in a night party was arrested in an unstable state and remains in custody. His two teammates, who fled the scene, are being pursued by the police. The news agency continued that efforts to secure the release of this player by his family and club officials have so far been unsuccessful, and he remains in custody. The police announced that the two other players who escaped must present themselves as soon as possible; otherwise, they will be arrested at home or during practice. On August 18, Reza Shajee, the Secretary of the Strategic Council and Head of the Environment and Sustainable Development Office of the Ministry of Sports and Youth, stated that three months have passed since the establishment of the Environment Office in the Ministry of Sports, during which an environmental movement has begun. He added that the Ministry of Sports of Iran is the first and only sports organization in the world whose 50 federations support 50 endangered species, and 30 sports departments support 30 endangered species. In the same context, issues such as 18% of children suffering from malnutrition, threats to Persepolis by 100 types of lichens, 100 unfinished hospitals, and assistance of 2,500 tons to Yemen, as well as 18 symbols of 'Satanism' and a $100,000 kidnapping are also mentioned.