Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived at Gilgit-Baltistan on Monday and presided over a high-level meeting to review the damage caused by recent heavy rains, sudden floods and clouds in the region.
It was received by Governor Syed Mehdi Shah, who reported it on the destruction scale caused by persistent rain, including landslides and floods.
Expressing sadness for losses, the prime minister said that Gilgit-Baltistan had suffered significant damage due to extreme climatic events.
He reiterated that Pakistan is among the most severely affected countries, despite contributing minimally to global carbon emissions.
Shehbaz emphasized that the impacts of climate change intensify every year and requested urgent and effective measures to combat them.
He said that the Ministry of Climate Change has been aimed at taking immediate measures.
Declaging the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) a key national institution, he said that federal agencies are working closely with the Gilgit-Baltistan government to accelerate aid and rescue operations.
The prime minister also received an informative session at land on the situation and was informed about the state of the ongoing development projects in the region, as well as the efforts of the local administration to administer the crisis.
The meeting discussed the launch of a Danish school in Gilgit-Baltistan, with Prime Minister Shehbaz confirming that the project would soon be implemented to improve educational standards.
Both leaders offered prayers for those who lost their lives in floods. The prime minister expressed a deep concern about the damage to infrastructure, households and livelihoods, and assured the region full support of the federal government.
Tourists among the dead as an emergency declared in 37 areas affected by floods
The GB government declared an emergency state in 37 areas throughout the mountainous region after floods charged at least 10 lives, most of them tourists, and left several other missing.
Read: Emergency declared in areas affected by the floods of 37 GB
Four people were reported wounds, while at least a dozen more remain without accounting, with ongoing rescue operations.
According to a notification issued by the Department of Origin of GB, the affected locations cover eight districts, including Diamer, Gilgit, Ghizer, Skardu, Shigar, Ghanche, Nagar and Kharmang.
The entire villages have flooded, the roads were washed and the houses were reduced to the debris as the swollen rivers climbed through valleys with terrifying force.
“People have suffered losses that include the loss of human lives, cattle, damage to houses, infrastructure and permanent crops,” said notification, invoking the National Calamities Law (Prevention and Relations), 1958.
GB government spokesman Faizullah Faraq confirmed that 22 vehicles had been swept and 509 houses were destroyed in floods.
Sudden floods claim 299 lives throughout Pakistan since the end of June
While GB takes the immediate step, the broader image in Pakistan is equally alarming. According to the National Authority for Disaster Management (NDMA), flooding and torrential rains since June 26 have killed 299 people throughout the country, including 140 children.
Read more: Sudden floods killed 299 in Pakistan since June 26: NDMA
Other 715 people have been injured, while more than 1,600 houses have been damaged or destroyed. The loss of 428 cattle has further deepened difficulties for affected families.
The NDMA has carried out 223 rescue operations and evacuated almost 2,900 people from areas affected by floods.
Thousands of essential relief articles have been sent, including tents, hygiene kits, food packages and wear pumps, affected communities. Medical teams have treated hundreds in 71 emergency camps.
From August 4 onwards, a new monzonic wave is expected to intensify, increasing the risk of sudden floods, landslides and floods of glacial lake burst in vulnerable regions.
