Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday called for advance alerts for residents of areas vulnerable during the monsoon season, a day after Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) reported that flash floods triggered mudslides in Gilgit-Baltistan, killing seven people.
One of Pakistan’s most popular tourist destinations, GB is home to some of the world’s tallest peaks, glaciers and fast-running streams.
Despite its strategic location as Pakistan’s only land route to China, the region’s limited infrastructure leaves it vulnerable to glacial lake outburst floods, flash floods and landslides, underscoring the need for stronger disaster management measures.
In a meeting with the prime minister, the top NDMA official, Lt Gen Inam Haider Malik, gave a briefing on the progress “toward making the early warning system in Gilgit-Baltistan fully operational and enhancing cooperation with the Ministry of Climate Change in this regard,” according to a statement released by the PM Office after the interaction.
“The NDMA should further strengthen its coordination with the provinces for assistance and rehabilitation of victims of the recent rains and flooding,” Sharif was quoted as saying during the meeting.
“People in vulnerable areas must be given advance alerts in view of weather conditions and possible emergencies,” he added. During the briefing, the NDMA also updated the prime minister on relief operations for recent rain and flood victims and preparedness for any future emergencies.
According to an NDMA situation report released Monday, seven people were killed and six injured in a mudslide in Gilgit’s Danyore Nullah area over the past 24 hours. The monsoon season, which began on June 26, has so far claimed 312 lives and injured 740 people nationwide.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department on Monday forecast that the Sutlej River at Ganda Singh Wala could rise to low flood levels in the next three days, warning of possible crop, livestock and property losses downstream.
It added that moderate monsoon currents from the Arabian Sea were expected to bring scattered thunderstorms over the upper catchments of the Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers, as well as Islamabad and parts of Punjab including Rawalpindi, Gujrat, Gujranwala and Lahore divisions.
