By Staff Reporter
LAHORE: The Punjab government on Tuesday announced a sweeping relief package for millions affected by recent floods, introducing personalised relief cards to deliver aid directly to victims.
Funded solely by provincial resources, the initiative bypasses the federal Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), underscoring tensions with the rival Sindh province.
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari detailed the response to a disaster that has affected 4.7 million people and 2.1 million livestock across 27 districts and 4,794 villages at a press conference. The floods, caused by three breaches in the Noraja Bhutta embankment along the Sutlej River, have inundated Multan, Bahawalpur, and Lodhran, destroying homes and infrastructure.
“The relief cards will ensure that help reaches the right people without making them suffer further. We are focused on serving, not politicizing,” Bokhari said. The cards aim to streamline aid distribution, though no timeline for payments was specified. The package includes Rs20,000 per acre for crop losses, Rs1 million for fully destroyed homes, Rs500,000 for partially damaged homes, and Rs500,000 for each cow or buffalo lost.
“All of these funds are from the Punjab government’s own resources. We haven’t asked anyone for financial aid,” Bokhari said.
Bokhari sharply criticized the Sindh government, led by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), accusing it of mismanaging its flood response. “Should we take advice from those who have turned Sindh into archaeological ruins?” she said, targeting PPP leaders, including Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Senate Chairman Yousuf Raza Gilani, who have praised Punjab’s efforts.
She also accused opposition parties of exploiting the crisis. “Our focus is on relief and rehabilitation. Not everything should be turned into politics,” Bokhari said. “These relief buses and programs are for the people, not for headlines.”
In Sindh, floods passing through the Kotri Barrage have submerged parts of Jamshoro district, flooding villages, farmland, and infrastructure. In Sehwan, 10 villages are underwater, with floodwaters breaching the Indus Highway and reaching the historic Lal Bagh area, disrupting electricity and road connections. A social media video showed a funeral procession wading through three to four feet of water near the shrine of Shah Owais Qarani.
In Punjab, the crisis stems from three breaches in the Noraja Bhutta embankment, one spanning 400 feet and others 30 to 40 feet. The breaches have redirected the Sutlej’s flow, flooding settlements such as Jhangra, Bahadurpur, and Kotla Chakar. The M5 motorway and Gilani Road are heavily damaged, prompting authorities to create a controlled breach at Gilani Road to divert water toward the Chenab River.
Officials said 70,000 to 80,000 cusecs of water continue to flow in the Sutlej, with efforts to seal the breaches potentially taking 12 days. Water is being diverted to canals at Sulemanki and Islam headworks to ease pressure on the embankment.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has actively overseen operations, with 2,213 rescue teams and 10,000 surveyors deployed. Punjab Relief Commissioner Nabil Javaid said 271 relief camps and 300 medical camps are operational, with 2.6 million people and 2.1 million animals relocated.
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