DNA
KARACHI: PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has appealed to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to rebuild houses destroyed or damaged due to floods in south Punjab.
“The immediate help we’re asking for on an emergency basis right now from the federal government, and I’ve talked to the prime minister himself, we request the premier to immediately provide financial aid to those areas which have been affected by the floods through the Benazir Income Support Programme.”
Sindh Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro said that a flow of 800,000 cusecs of water was moving towards Guddu Barrage from Chachran, but assured that all preparations to deal with a possible super flood had been completed.
Speaking to journalists, the minister said around 200,000 people in the katcha areas could be affected, while 70 relief camps and 40 boats had been arranged for the operation. He added that 30 schools and one health centre between Guddu and Sukkur had already been impacted.
Shoro said the first priority was to shift women and children to safe locations, while water released from Sukkur Barrage was being diverted towards Kotri and onwards to the sea. “InshaAllah, the flood surge will safely pass into the sea,” he remarked.
The minister clarified there was no option of breaching embankments in Sindh, adding that canal flows had not been stopped, and standard operating procedures were being followed to open gates when water levels rose.
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) forecasted more rains in several districts of Punjab, including Gujranwala, Sialkot, Lahore, and Hafizabad, during 12 to 24 hours.
In a statement, it said Faisalabad, Chiniot, Sargodha, Multan, Layyah, Khanewal, and Dera Ghanzi Khan are also expected to receive more rain, while downpours have been predicted for Liaquatpur, Zahir Pir, and Rahim Yar Khan.
The NDMA also forecasted rain in Sindh for 24 hours.
The authority said rains may cause landslides and overflow of drains in low-lying areas. Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat has said that the recent floods have severely affected the education sector of Punjab, stating that over 2,000 schools in the province have been completely or partially damaged.
Hayat said that the Punjab government is trying to ensure that children’s education in flooded districts is not affected or interrupted.
The minister said that the restoration of educational institutions has been ensured by setting up tent schools in flood relief camps on the instructions of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif.
“I have seen determination, courage and faith in the eyes of innocent children in tent schools set up in flood-affected areas,” Hayat was quoted as saying. “The confidence of these children has also increased our morale. If this confidence remains in the children, no one’s dream of education will remain unfulfilled.”
