Preparing for floods : Officials review plans to minimise losses

District admins have been instructed to complete their preparations by March 15

LAHORE: The government has chalked a strategy to handle a possible flood situation this year. Several directions in connection with the plan were issued at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Flood Control at the Civil Secretariat on Tuesday.

The meeting was presided over by Minister Bilal Yasin and Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Jawad Akram, Punjab Chief Secretary Khizar Hayat Gondal, Adviser to Chief Minister on Prisons Arshad Saeed, Board of Revenue Senior Member Zahid Saeed, Agriculture Secretary Sheharyar Sultan and Chief Meteorologist Muhammad Riaz were also present at the occasion.

Akram told the participants of the meeting that the PDMA was working on a comprehensive plan to handle monsoon rains and possible floods in the province this year.



Work on the plan started on January 15, he said.

District administrations have been told to submit reports on establishing control rooms, nominating focal people and various other arrangements that have to be completed by March 15, he said.

Minister Bilal Yasin said the DCOs of sensitive districts must complete arrangements on time in order to prevent losses from possible flooding.

He said Rajanpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Mianwali and Khushab districts were particularly vulnerable to floods and should be secured before all other districts.

He directed the Irrigation Department to check up on dykes and the embankments of rivers and streams in flood-prone areas and carry out repair work if necessary.

Chief Secretary Khizar Hayat Gondal lauded former senior member board of revenue Nadeem Ashraf, Jawad Akram and the DCOs of flood-hit districts for their efforts in minimising damage wreaked by floods during 2015.

He said natural disasters like floods could be dealt with only through thorough planning.

He also urged relevant officers to continue to work committedly and maintain close coordination with each other.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 20^th, 2016.