By Asim Shahzad
LAHORE: meeting of the Standing Committee on Disaster Management has held under the chairmanship of Ms. Qudsia Batul, MPA. The meeting was attended by the members of the committee, Ms. Sadia Muzaffar, MPA; Ms. Rukhsana Shafiq, MPA; Mr. Muhammad Akbar Hayat Hiraj, MPA; Mr. Noorul Amin Wattoo, MPA; Ms. Fiza Mamoon; and Ms. Nasreen Riaz, MPA, while Mr. Rana Muhammad Arshad, MPA attended on special invitation.
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The Director General Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) along with his team briefed the committee about the mandate, duties and establishment of PDMA.
During the briefing, the committee was informed that PDMA is now dealing with various types of disasters including floods, hailstorms, snowstorms, extreme heat waves, droughts, smog, fire incidents, famine, epidemics including COVID-19 and earthquakes. The Director General briefed the meeting on risk management and preparedness measures, assessment of monsoon floods after 2025, and details of rescue and relief operations. It was informed on the occasion that during the previous floods, 27,000 villages were affected, 4.7 million people suffered losses, and 24 million acres of agricultural land was damaged.
The committee was also informed that various compensation and rehabilitation programs were implemented under the supervision of the Chief Minister of Punjab, under which Rs 55 billion was distributed, 2,200 teams were formed in 27 districts, and facilities were provided to a large number of affected people.
The meeting also discussed the gaps in the compensation process and identified the places where the victims could not get full assistance. In this regard, instructions were issued to submit complete details of the program, pending complaints, district and tehsil level data, and budget estimates for the financial year 2025–26, while ensuring continuous support to the affected population. The Chairperson directed the PDMA to take the concerned MPAs into confidence, make risk management planning for the upcoming monsoon more effective, and launch awareness campaigns for the settlements in riverine and flood-prone areas.
At the end of the meeting, the efforts of all the participants were appreciated and special tribute was paid to the flood relief activities of the Chief Minister of Punjab, while the commitment was expressed to further improve the preparedness and response to future disasters.
