Daily Times

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan has directed concerned authorities to conduct a comprehensive study to identify flood sensitive areas in the province and include construction of embankments and flood protection walls in development budget to prevent future damages.

Chairing a meeting to discuss flood damages in the province, the chief minister directed district administration to ensure that all relief items are distributed among the flood affected people and said that negligence in this regard would not be tolerated.

He appreciated the role of political leaders, district administrations, PDMA, rescue and relief workers, and said that entire government machinery undertook the responsibility of relief and rescue with dedication.

The chief minister was informed that mosquito nets and chlorination tablets are being provided to flood affected people to avoid any epidemic. Similarly, clean drinking water is being provided to displaced persons through water tankers. It was said that agricultural sector in KP have suffered losses in billions and more than 1450 kilometers of roads have been damaged which is also expected to increase once the water recedes and final assessments are completed.

Additional Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah briefed the participants about district wise losses in different sectors including losses to human settlements, public roads, bridges, schools, health facilities, irrigation and agricultural infrastructure. He told that data is being collected from all the districts through district administration that can be viewed online.

It was informed that more than 364,000 people were evacuated in time due to which losses to human lives reduced significantly. Similarly, the proactive measures of provincial government, good governance, anti-encroachment drive and construction of embankments and flood protection walls reduced damages considerably.

The meeting was informed that doctors and allied staff have been deputed in all health facilities to look after medical requirements of the displaced people.

The chief minister was informed that District Upper and Lower Dir, Swat, Upper and Lower Kohistan, Charsadda, DI Khan and Tank suffered severe losses whereas District Upper and Lower Chitral, Mansehra and Swabi suffered medium intensity losses. More than 600,000 people have been displaced as per initial assessments.

The chief minister directed systematic distribution of donation and aids to ensure efficient and equitable distribution of relief items and packages. The meeting was informed that all compensation packages would be provided to flood victims as per new revised rates.