Incessant flooding and rainfall across Pakistan on Friday left millions of people distressed and waiting for relief in all four provinces, particularly Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where immense devastations have been recorded in one day.
Flooding triggered by rain has caused infrastructural damage and disconnected communication, but rescue and relief activities remain a challenge due to air, rail and road networks suspended in some of the severely damaged localities, particularly in Balochistan.
Earlier today, communication in Balochistan was cut off due to heavy overnight downpour. However , Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) restored the communications today.
Affectees have, therefore, been rendered hopeless while waiting to be rescued and shifted to safer locations. Some victims across flood-hit areas also wait to receive relief items.
A day earlier, official shared that a British-era railway bridge between Kolpur and Mach in Bolan Pass washed away in floods and cut off Quetta, the capital of Balochistan.
Damaged bridges and landslides blocked all four highways linking Balochistan with other provinces across the country.
More than 235 people have so far lost their lives in the province, while hundreds of thousands have their homes and destroyed following the catastrophic floods, authorities stated.
Appeals surge to support flood victims in Pakistan
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has urged friendly nations and donors to support the on-going relief and rehabilitation efforts following flood devastations across Pakistan, as the devastations have hit around 33 million people in the country.
PM Shahbaz has reiterated his request for support during a meeting select Islamabad-based ambassadors, high commissioners and other senior members of the diplomatic corps, to brief them on flood situation.
“More than 900 people including 300 children have lost their lives and 1300 have been injured so far,” the PM said while briefing meeting attendees representing Australia, Canada, China, Japan, Kuwait, UAE, Turkiye, South Korea, USA, Germany, Bahrain, European Union, France, Oman, Qatar, UK, and Saudi Arabia. Country representative of the World Food Programme (WFP) was also present at the meeting.
PM Shahbaz announces Rs15 bn for Sindh
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif announced grant worth Rs15 billion for affectees in Sindh’s flood-hit areas.
The announcement came following the prime minister’s visit to Sukkur for reviewing the current status of relief and rehabilitation activities in the catastrophe-hit province where he was received Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Minister for Water Resources Syed Khursheed Shah, and Chief Minister of Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah.
All relevant authorities including the chairman of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Sukkur’s district administration and representatives, Sindh’s chief secretary, and chief engineer of Sukkur Barrage briefed the PM regarding the status of relief and rehabilitation efforts.
During his visit to the flood-hit areas, the PM took an aerial view of inundated areas across Sukkur, Rohri, Khairpur, Faiz Ganj, Kot Diji, and Thari Mir Wah. He also met with affectees during his visit.
The PM mentioned that over 900 people died due to floods in the last few months, while the situation incurred a heavy toll on crops and livestock as well.
During his visit, PM Shahbaz announced disbursement of Rs25,000 per household through Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) starting from today onward.
“In one week, around Rs28 billion would be given to the affected people,” PM Shahbaz said, adding a joint survey was being conducted by the departments of federal and provincial governments to assess the damages, lauding the efforts of provincial government and Pakistan Army during the devastations.
