Azad Pattan in danger of drowning

Flooding in Jhelum River foreseen as heavy downpour continues in IIOJK, AJK

RAWALPINDI:

The threat of flooding in Jhelum River has increased due to unpredictable heavy downpour in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) as well as Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) during the last 48 hours, according to the Rawalpindi District Administration on Wednesday.

The Jhelum River originates at Verinag and flows through IIOJK to AJK, and then into Punjab.

According to the Rawalpindi District Administration, the road from Azad Pattan to AJK has been closed for the last 36 hours to avoid loss of life and property. “The floodwater completely destroyed the highway established in 1947.”

Locals of Rawlakot, Hajira, Pallandri, Baloch, Abbaspur, Madarpur and Khai Gullah are facing severe difficulties due to the road closure.

A spokesperson for the district administration said that Azad Pattan was in danger of drowning due to heavy floods. “Landslides are also continuing intermittently due to continuous rise in water.”

According to the local administration, the flood from AJK has reached Srinagar. The Vishnu Nullah water has also joined the floodwater of Jhelum River forcing the Muzaffarabad State Disaster Management Authority to issue an alert.

The Muzaffarabad administration has also alerted the under-construction Azad Pattan hydropower project management about the flood situation.

The hydropower project is a 700 megawatts hydroelectric power station on the Jhelum River roughly seven kilometres upstream of Azad Pattan Bridge in the Sudhanoti district, AJK, and 90km from Islamabad.

Additional police and Rescue 1122 officials have been deployed in Azad Pattan. They will remain on alert for the next 24 hours.

The spokesperson said, “A major flood from Srinagar will join the Jhelum River tonight (Wednesday), increasing the risk of landslides and drowning of riverside settlements.”

The district administration sources said that a ban has been imposed on public transport as well as goods transport, adding that Muzaffarabad rainwater is flowing from Azad Pattan at present.