PM Shehbaz directs authorities to provide financial assistance to flood-hit families

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday directed the relevant authorities to provide financial support to families affected by the recent monsoon rains and floods, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said.

The statement said that the premier issued the directions while chairing a meeting on the recent monsoon rains and floods and the damage caused.

During the meeting, he directed that financial assistance be provided to the families of those who had lost their lives in the floods as well as to those whose homes had been partially or completely destroyed, the statement said.

He instructed that restoration of the power supply and the rehabilitation of roads be completed as soon as possible, it added.

He further directed the relevant federal ministers and secretaries to visit the affected areas, assess the damage, initiate rehabilitation work and expedite relief activities.

PM Shehbaz ordered that essential food items and other relief supplies be delivered as soon as possible to the areas that had so far remained inaccessible.

He also directed the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the Provincial District Management Authorities (PDMAs) to remain fully prepared in view of the possibility of further rains and flooding.

The statement said that during the meeting, the prime minister was briefed on the effects of monsoon in the current year and the update on relief activities taken by the NDMA and provinces.

In the briefing, he was told that flood affectees across the country had been shifted to safer areas in a timely manner. PM Shehbaz was further informed that over all 615 tonnes of relief goods had been dispatched to affected areas, while measures were being taken to send more relief items to these areas, the statement said.

He was also told that work on rehabilitating infrastructure in areas affected in Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir was ongoing.

Early warning systems were also operational in the northern areas, the meeting was told. The systems had enabled the timely evacuation of several citizens to safe locations before the floods, it added.

According to NDMA, 164 people have died in Pakistan between June 26 and August 21 during the ongoing monsoon season.

On Friday, the Pakistan Met­­­­­eorological Department forecast a fresh spell of rain, wind and thundershowers across the country’s upper and central regions through the weekend, warning of potential urban and flash flooding.

According to the Met Office, continuous monsoon currents are penetrating upper and central parts of Pakistan, alongside a westerly wave, bringing downpours from Aug 22 (today) to Aug 23 with occasional gaps.

Rain, wind and thunderstorms with isolated heavy downpours are expected across Punjab’s major cities and divisions, including Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sargodha, Faisalabad and Multan.

In KP, downpours are expected across the Hazara, Malakand, Peshawar, Mardan, Kohat and Dera Ismail Khan divisions. The weather system will also affect the entire Gilgit-Baltistan region and the Kashmir region, including Muzaffarabad and Mirpur.

While Sindh and Balochistan will mostly remain hot and humid, isolated showers are expected in Balochistan’s Kalat and Zhob divisions.