Lahore:
Officials in disaster management announced the end of the Monsun season, yet flooded flood threats continued in southern Punjab on Tuesday as the province was preparing to pick up the pieces after an unhappy flood affecting more than four million people, their homes and their crops.
While flooding water has facilitated pressure in Punjab’s top regions, they continue to rise through southern districts and drain into the River Indus, causing National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to issue fresh alarms for Sindh and Balochistan.
The disaster has so far demanded 66 lives in Punjab and damaged an estimated 1.95 million acres agricultural land. Among the victims were 13 people, including five children who died when floods destroyed Jalalpur Pirwala on Tuesday.
“The tenth and final Monsun Tull Forms have been completed, without any fresh greater rainfall in Upper Punjab,” said Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Chef Irfan Ali Kathia. “Streams retreat in the north, but the south still carries brown when waters waves against Sindh.”
In a sign of improvement, the authorities noted that residents of Lejre in Gujrat and Narowal districts had begun to return to their homes. Officials said they expected these villages to move towards normality within four to five days.
Meanwhile, the authorities in Multan and Muzaffargarh weighed desperate measures, including violation of Shershah flood protection targets along the Chenab river if the levels rise beyond 393.5 feet. A violation could flood 20 to 30 villages, but officials claim that it might be the only way to save Multan.
Pakistan Railways has warned that if the shershah damp is violated, services at Multan -Rawalpindi -line – including Mehr Express and Thal Express – will be suspended, and even Multan – Karachi Main Line could be threatened.
Further south, dams in Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan remain under strain, but still holding, officials said. However, violations near smaller villages such as Panoohar have expelled hundreds.
In UCH SHARIF dozens of settlements have gone underwater. Torrential Rains also submerged tent camps in Multan, while lifeboats hijacked in Liaquatpur and Muzaffargarh, killing four. More than 100 villages in Jalalpur Pirwala remain flooded.
Punjab -Nut Help Commissioner Nabeel Javed said 4.2 million people over 4,300 villages were affected, with more than 2.16 million evacuated. The province has created 417 Emergency Aid, 498 Medical Lejre and 431 Veterinary Centers moving 1.57 million animals to safety.
Nationwide, NDMA said nearly 928 people have died and more than 1,000 wounded since the end of June. Over 8,100 houses have been destroyed or damaged with the heaviest losses reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. Lydeal loss exceeds 6,000.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has formed a high-level committee to assess loss of agricultural and food security. The panel estimates damage to cash crops such as cotton, rice, sugar cane and corn, while also investigating the impact on livestock, feed and export.
Kathia emphasized that the government would advertise a larger relief package for affected families. “This is one of the biggest flooding events in Punjab’s history,” he said. “But with coordinated efforts, we have saved millions of lives and will continue to support improvement in the coming weeks.”
As flooding water from Punjab poured south, Sindh and Balochistan spelled the effect. In the midst of thunderstorms, rain, rain and possible tray cleaners from the Kirsthar series released NDMA flood alarms for Karachi, Hyderabad, Thattta, Badin and several other districts.
With SUKKUR barrier, which already received 375,000 CUSERCS, the authorities have opened all gates to ease the pressure. Officials say the next 48 hours are critical. If river peaks coincide with fresh rain, medium -level flooding in Sindh could escalate into a wider disaster.
