Punjab is confronting a devastating flood disaster, with its three major rivers—Ravi, Chenab, and Sutlej—in a catastrophic “super flood” stage. The crisis has claimed at least 28 lives, primarily in the Gujranwala division, and impacted a staggering 1.45 million people across 1,769 villages. In a drastic measure to save Kasur city from being completely submerged, authorities were forced to deliberately breach the Sutlej river’s embankment after it swelled to its highest level since 1955. The floodwaters have also reached the outskirts of Lahore, threatening the major town of Jhang and prompting massive evacuations.
The scale of the disaster is immense, with official figures confirming rescue operations have evacuated over 429,000 people and 300,000 cattle to safety. River flows have reached historic highs; the Ravi River at Lahore’s Shahdara point surged to 220,000 cusecs, its highest since 1988. While water levels at some headworks are beginning to recede or stabilize, others like Balloki are seeing rising flows. The situation downstream remains extremely precarious, with officials expressing major concern for the Jhang area and warning that the rising surge from the Ravi could inundate the town of Sadani within 36 hours.
Compounding the crisis, the Pakistan Meteorological Department has forecast fresh rounds of widespread rain, wind, and thunderstorms. This new weather system raises the threat of further flash floods, urban flooding, and landslides across Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Kashmir, and other regions. Cities like Lahore, Gujranwala, and Sialkot are at particular risk of urban flooding in low-lying areas. The receding waters in some districts, like Wazirabad, have left behind mud, debris, and the looming threat of waterborne diseases, with returning families finding their homes and livelihoods destroyed.
In response to the unfolding calamity, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is set to convene an emergency meeting with provincial leaders to develop a national strategy for climate change adaptation and future flood mitigation. The government announced a focus on constructing water reservoirs in all provinces and regions, including Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan, for better water management. Emphasizing that climate change is a stark reality, the government stated that only through unified national preparation and cooperation can the damage from such natural disasters be prevented.
