Flood victims. Photo: Archive
LAHORE:
The Punjab Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) on Friday announced that the survey of flood-affected families across Punjab has been completed, marking a major milestone in the province’s post-flood rehabilitation efforts.
PDMA Director General Irfan Ali Kathia said the floods began on August 26 and affected 27 districts of Punjab. “The survey, started on September 27 with the attendance of 11,500 field staff, has now been completed,” he said.
He added that only two tehsils, Rojhan and Sadiqabad, could not be covered due to their remote katcha terrain.
He said the PDMA survey was “the most transparent in the history of Pakistan”, adding that all verified victims would receive their due compensation within this month. “The distribution of funds to the 600,000 affected families will be completed by the end of this month.”
Giving further details, the Director General said that approximately 575,000 entries had been made in the system so far. “Due to Internet problems, some entries are still pending, but the data of almost 500,000 people have already been processed,” he added.
According to PDMA figures, 186,073 houses were damaged or destroyed by the floods, while more than 1.44 million acres of crops were devastated. A total of 214,493 people’s data have been completely verified, while the remaining cases are going through different stages of verification.
Meanwhile, 189,000 bank accounts have been successfully opened for beneficiaries, allowing for direct disbursement of funds. “Just yesterday, 7,500 people were compensated in a single day,” Kathia said.
The PDMA chief said 953 complaints had been received so far, all of which had been addressed. “If anyone still has any issue regarding the survey, they can lodge a complaint online or contact their respective deputy commissioner,” he said.
