Islamabad:
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday imposed on all provinces and relevant institutions to make a comprehensive assessment of the damage caused by recent rain and flooding so that an effective rehabilitation plan could be prepared.
He was chairman of a meeting in Islamabad and praised the “timely and effective actions” taken by provincial chief ministers in response to the weather -related challenges, but emphasized the need for coordinated efforts. He urged federal and interprovinsial bodies to “cooperate carefully to estimate the full extent of damage.”
PM Shehbaz said assessments should explain human and financial losses as well as ‘destruction of crops and losses in livestock.’ He advised officials to seek satellite -based data from Suparco and called for immediate measures to protect crops from diseases after flooding.
He added that there was a need for targeted efforts to grow appropriate crops in flooded areas and emphasized the recovery of infrastructure with priority to repair damaged roads. He ordered all ministers and agencies to remain engaged in affected communities throughout the recovery process.
During the meeting, the chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and other officials informed the Prime Minister on reconstruction and rehabilitation measures. He was also informed that damage assessments for sugar cane, cotton and rice crops are underway and are expected to be completed within 15 days when the water level retires.
During monsoon rains and flash floods since June 26, 998 people have lost their lives. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) recorded the highest losses with 504 deaths, followed by Punjab with 283, Sindh 71, GB 41, and Balochistan registered 26 deaths.
Punjab topped the list of the wound with 660 cases, while KP reported 214, Sindh 87, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) 52, Azad Jammu and Kashmir 37 and Balochistan Five.
The accident also caused extensive damage to properties. In KP alone, 3,217 houses were damaged – 700 complete and 2,517 partly. Damage has also been reported in other regions: 2,411 houses in AJK, 1,260 in GB, 1,009 in Balochistan, 281 in Sindh and 238 in Punjab.
