Floods kill 17, displace 600,000 across Punjab

LAHORE: Devastating floods in Sutlej, Ravi and Chenab rivers have displaced hundreds of thousands and submerged large parts of Punjab, causing severe damage to infrastructure and destroying vast areas of farmland.

The three rivers have swollen to dangerous levels due to heavy rainfall and water released from dams in India, which later flowed into Pakistan.

The crisis has already hit central Punjab districts and now poses a threat to southern Punjab as floodwaters from four rivers are expected to converge today.

According to the PDMA, 17 people have so far died, including five in Sialkot, four in Gujrat, three in Narowal, two in Hafizabad and one in Gujranwala.

Officials said that more than 150,000 people and 35,000 livestock have been moved to safe locations in central Punjab. Relief and medical camps, including veterinary services, have been set up in affected areas.

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Authorities estimate that more than 600,000 people have been affected due to flooding.

Rescue 1122 spokesperson Farooq Ahmed said that 39,638 people have been evacuated from Sialkot, Sargodha, Chiniot, Gujranwala, Nankana, Hafizabad, Mandi Bahauddin, Gujrat, Lahore, Narowal, Kasur, Okara, Pakpattan, Bahawalnagar, Vehari, Bahawalpur and Lodhran.

As of midnight Thursday, three locations were placed under “very high flood” conditions.

Affected areas

Along the Chenab, 333 villages with more than 150,000 residents were affected, including 133 in Sialkot, 16 in Wazirabad, 20 in Gujrat, 12 in Mandi Bahauddin, 100 in Chiniot and 52 in Jhang.

Along the Sutlej, 335 villages with 380,768 residents were affected. A total of 104 relief camps and 105 medical camps are operating for the victims. Cities hit by the Sutlej floods include Kasur, Okara, Pakpattan, Multan, Vehari, Bahawalnagar and Bahawalpur.

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In Kasur alone, 72 villages and 450,000 people were badly affected. In Pakpattan, 12 villages; Vehari, 23; Bahawalnagar, 75; and Bahawalpur, 15 villages suffered severe flooding.

The communication and works department said several districts, particularly Narowal, Shakargarh and Sialkot, saw roads submerged. The Sialkot-Pasrur dual carriageway was under water for nearly a kilometre.

At Kotli Chohar, a breach in the Naullah Dek embankment damaged the road and the Kona Drain bridge.

According to BBC Urdu, dozens of villages in Narowal district were submerged after water from Indian-held Jammu and Kashmir entered the Ravi.

Local residents and rescue officials said 35 to 40 villages in Narowal were inundated.

Floodwaters from the Ravi submerged parts of the Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara Complex by several feet, stranding Sikh pilgrims and staff.

Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Narowal Deputy Commissioner Syed Hassan Raza and Punjab Minister for Minority Affairs Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora supervised the rescue operation in Kartarpur Sahib. Four teams rescued and relocated over 150 Sikh pilgrims and staff from the shrine.

The Narowal-Shakargarh road was submerged for 3 to 4 kilometres, cutting off nearby villages. In Zafarwal tehsil of Narowal, dozens of villages were inundated. The town of Kanjroor, with nearly 20,000 people, was said to be at high risk.

Rising water levels in Naullah Dek worsened the situation, with several embankments breached and the Hanjli bridge completely washed away. The stream’s water also inundated parts of rural Sialkot and damaged the Chawinda-Zafarwal road.

The Ravi’s floodwaters downstream affected Sheikhupura, Nankana Sahib and Okara, while parts of Faisalabad’s Tandlianwala tehsil and Sahiwal also faced threats.

In Nankana Sahib, areas including Hira, Jattan Dawara, Nawan Kot, Khizra Abad and Lalu Ana were inundated, as well as Sheikh Datol, Gujran Da Thatta, Khoh Siddique, Dera Hakim and Dera Mehr Ashraf.

In Okara, Ravi’s floodwaters swept through Jandran Kalan (population over 30,000), as well as Jidhu and Jhindu Manj.

In Faisalabad, authorities warned that Tandlianwala tehsil could be affected by Ravi waters, putting over 100 settlements at risk, including Jaman Dolon, Jali Taryanah, Jali Fityanah, Mari Patan, Sheraza and Thatta Dukan.

The Chenab floods hit Sialkot, Mandi Bahauddin, Sargodha, Gujrat, Wazirabad, Hafizabad, Chiniot and Jhang.

Journalist Aqeel Lodhi from Wazirabad told BBC Urdu that Chenab waters entered parts of the city, severely impacting Sohdra and nearby areas. In northern Sialkot, the Bajwat area—between the Chenab and Tawi rivers—was badly hit, with about 70 villages submerged. Rescue officials confirmed that road links connecting these villages to Sialkot city were completely cut off.

Rescue and relief operations

At a meeting chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, it was reported that 600,126 people from 769 villages were affected by floods in the Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab rivers.

A total of 263 relief camps and 161 medical camps have been set up to provide food, healthcare and temporary shelters.

In Sambrial, Sialkot and Pasrur, food supplies were being distributed among flood-hit families. Evacuations were also carried out in Kasur, Nankana Sahib, Chiniot and Wazirabad’s Palkhu Nala.

The Pakistan Army, district administrations, police, Rescue 1122, PDMA and other departments are jointly conducting rescue and relief operations.