Recent floods have ravaged crops, agricultural land and houses through Punjab, sweeping the life economies of countless families and leaving them overwhelmed by debt.
In a private housing company near Mohlanwal, Lahore, the houses once built with Hope are now abandoned – broken doors, the walls have collapsed and the personal effects ruined by flood waters. For many residents, devastation extends beyond the loss of property with overwhelming loans taken to build these houses.
Basharat Bibi recalled how early weeks have been completed.
“On August 10, the construction was over. We were preparing for a prayer meeting when the floods destroyed everything,” she said. Her husband, a ripper driver, had been injured during the renovation work.
“We built this house with a loan from Akhuwat as part of the” Apni Chhat, Apna Ghar “program. The first episode was not even paid, and now we only find ourselves debt. ”
The story is the same for Nadeem Iqbal and his brothers, who have invested their savings in their house.
“We have spent the income of our lives on this house, but the flood won all our dreams,” he said, pointing to the water that is always inside.
For Muhammad Jahangir, the water fell but destruction remains. Broken furniture, doors sewn mud and ruined devices fill his house.
“When the flood arrived, the police evacuated everyone and did not allow us to take anything,” he said. On the roof, his mother tried to dry her daughter’s dowry in the sun.
“We saved for years to buy this, but everything is ruined,” she said, adding that some items had been stolen during chaos.
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Jahangir said their solar inverter had also been taken. “It was not only us. Many residents here suffer not only from the destruction of the flood but also from thefts. ”
“We ask the chief minister of Punjab Maryam Nawaz to hear our plea. We have built houses for our children with loans and hard work, but everything was destroyed. At the very least, our loans should be struck off so that we can start again. Hundreds of families in society are now held in the middle of the wreckage, haunted by the anxiety of reimbursing loans for houses that no longer exist.
According to Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), more than 3,300 villages in Punjab were affected by floods in Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab rivers. It is estimated that 3.36 million people were affected, while nearly 1.3 million were evacuated to safer areas.
For families struck by floods, this tragedy does not only concern destroyed houses, but on broken dreams, ruined dowries and the future buried under rubble – while they are waiting for the state to intervene and help them rebuild their life.
Emergency efforts in areas affected by floods
The Pakistani army, the civil administration and other departments continue to rescue and rescue operations in the areas affected by the floods in southern Punjab.
The protective embankment of Ganda Singh Wala on the Sutlej river broke, while a high -level flood was reported to the Sulemanki head.
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The protective embankment of Ganda Singh Wala on the Sutlej river broke, while a high -level flood was reported to the sulemanki head, intensifying the crisis of floods through the Punjab.
According to officials, twelve rescue camps have been created in suburban areas near the river. In Sahiwal, 49 villages were flooded, with 30 camps installed to support displaced residents.
A high -level flood is also underway Sidhnai in Tehsil Kabirwala, where rescue operations take place in Tulamba, Mian Channu and Iqbal Nagar. Thousands of people, livestock and wheat stocks have been moved to safer places.
In Okara, free medical camps have been set up for flood victims, while additional camps were created in Ranpur and Head Muhammad Wala. In Tehsil Muzaffargarh and Kot Addu, precautionary measures are examined jointly by the Pakistani army and the civil administration.
Rescue work also continues in Kholra Point, Hasu Wali, Budhwana, Jhang and Chiniot, where hundreds of people and animals have been transferred to safer areas. The Pakistani army has established several emergency camps, guaranteeing food, clothing and medication supplies, while free medical facilities are provided to the keys.
The crisis has worsened after the liberation of India large volumes of water in Sutlej, which caused large alerts in at least nine districts of Punjab in the midst of fears that new entries could worsen the already “extremely high” situation.
