Student organizations at Iowa State are planning fundraisers to help the citizens of Pakistan and India after Saturday’s 7.6 magnitude earthquake that devastated much of Pakistan and parts of India.

Pakistani officials are calling the earthquake the worst to hit the country on record.

Olamide Shadiya, president of the International Student Council, said she was saddened by the tragedy.

“It was terrible; a year full of disasters going around the world, and now, there is another disaster,” said Shadiya, senior in chemical engineering.

A week ago, the International Student Council donated money from the council’s account to the victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

“Now we have another disaster to think about on our hands,” she said.

Omer Naeem Cheema, vice president of the Pakistan Student Association and senior in computer engineering, said the association is already making plans with the ISC and the Indian Students’ Association to hold a series of fundraising events within the next couple of weeks.

Kashmir, a less prosperous region of Pakistan near the epicenter, was hit hardest, but the quake’s effects could be felt as far away as India and Afghanistan.

Because of the already low socioeconomic status of residents of Kashmir, Cheema said the rebuilding process will be even more extensive.

“It’s going to take a long time,” Cheema said.

Kaiser Kaiserani, president of the Pakistan Student Association, said there are ISU students who live in the affected areas, but he hasn’t received confirmed reports about the status of their homes.

They have been unable to reach their loved ones because of the landslides and damage to highways. The only way to reach those affected is by helicopter.

Kaiserani, junior in accounting, said they are planning to do fundraisers on- and off-campus, by setting up booths and donations boxes around campus and contacting local businesses.

Shadiya said they also plan to raise funds during the upcoming International Student Week, Nov. 7 to Nov. 13.

Kaiserani said those who volunteer will have the option of donating to one of eight organizations. If the donor has no preference, the money will be donated to the Edhi Foundation, the largest welfare organization in Pakistan.

He said although most of the money is expected to go to Pakistan, where the devastation and casualties were most severe, it will be split in a “fair manner” between India and Pakistan.