The release of flood waters by India aggravates the crisis in Punjab

Lahore:

While flooding waters swell through Punjab after the release of India water in eastern rivers, the Pakistani army was deployed to help large -scale rescue and rescue operations, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) confirming that more than 210,000 people have been safely evacuated from vulnerable areas, and no victim reported so far.

The President and CEO of the NDMA, General Inam Haider Malik, speaking on Wednesday at a press briefing, said that evacuations had been carried out thanks to coordinated efforts involving the Pakistani army, the Rangers, rescue 1122, provincial disasters management authorities (PDMA) and other civil agencies.

“All the evacues have been moved to rescue camps managed by the government where they receive food, medical care and essential supplies,” he said, adding that these installations will remain functional until families are sure for home.

The water levels should increase considerably in the coming days, the flow of Panjnad providing for 600,000 to 700,000 cuses, which caused increased surveillance to downstream points, notably Kotri and Guddu. The evacuation continues along the Sutlej river is underway, with the priority given to the vulnerable populations as indicated by the chief of the staff of the army (COAS) Marshal Syed Asim Munnir.

The authorities said that neighboring India had released the water from the dams upstream on its side of the border, further increasing the volume of water reaching Pakistan. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that New Delhi had given an advanced opinion through diplomatic channels before the opening of the barrage.

Kartarpur was flooded when the number of dams was blowing

The authorities exploded an embankment next to a monsoon dam while floods overwhelmed one of the most sacred Sikhs in the world.

The authorities carried out a controlled explosion of an embankment at the Qadirabad dam on the Chenab river on Wednesday as the water levels increased.

“To save the structure, we violated the good marginal embankment so that the flow of reduced water,” said Mazhar Hussain, spokesperson for the Punjab disasters management agency.

The Kartarpur temple, where the founder of Guru Faith Sikh Nanak died in 1539, was overwhelmed by flood waters near the border with India.

Five boats were sent to the sprawling site to save around 100 people who have remained blocked.

Visuals in the region have shown that Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in the Narowal district completely overwhelmed after the Ravi river overflowed its banks.

The Disaster Management Authority has issued emergency alerts and advised those who live near the Chenab rivers, delighted and knew “to move immediately to safe locations”.

“I urge the public to evacuate the floodplates along the Ravi river, because the water flow has been the highest since 1988,” said the head of the Provincial Catastrophe Irfan Ali.

The flood wave “should go through Lahore tonight and tomorrow morning,” he said about the capital of Punjab.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired an emergency meeting in Islamabad, where he ordered the NDMA to strengthen early alert systems and take immediate measures to prevent urban floods in Lahore, Siackot and Gujrat.

This aerial photograph shows partially submerged houses in the area affected by the floods of the village of Haqu Wala in the Pakistan Kasur district on August 26, 2025. Photo: AFP

The Prime Minister reiterated the full support of the federal government in Punjab because he previously extended to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa during the recent flood events.

During the same briefing, the Federal Minister for Information and Diffusion Attaullah Tarar reported significant overvoltages at the water level in the Sutlej, Ravi and Chenab rivers, the Khanki point exceeding 1,000,000 cuses, now moving to Qadirabad.

Tarar stressed that the government is determined to prevent future construction along the rivers beds and actively coordinate with local administrations for new evacuations, in particular in Qadirabad.

During the meeting, it was pointed out that high levels of water discharge are closely monitored in the Marala, Khanki, Balloki and Qadirabad head, while the pressure points on the Ravi river in Shahdara and Sutlej in Sulemanki are also under control.

Rescue volunteers 1122 Look for residents in a flooded area, after the monsoon rains and the increase in water levels in Siackot, Punjab province, Pakistan, August 27, 2025. Reuters: Reuters

Managers, including federal ministers Ahsan Iqbal, Musadik Malik, Attaullah Tarar and Ahad Khan Cheema, were present at the high -level briefing alongside NDMA and government representatives.

Earlier, the director general of the media, the media, public relations (ISPR), lieutenant-general Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, said that three rivers in Pakistan were experiencing floods, the army carrying out rescue operations in the affected areas.

He was flanked by the Minister of Information Attaullah Tarar and the President and CEO of the NDMA, General Inam Haider Malik.

The CEO ISPR said that troops and officers stood with the nation during this difficult period.

Army deployed in eight districts

In Punjab, chief minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif chaired a four -hour emergency meeting to assess the district impacts and coordinate rescue efforts. The Pakistani army has been deployed in eight districts, including Lahore, Kasur, Sialkot, Faisalabad, Narowal, Okara, Sargodha and Hafizabad – to support local administrations.

According to the department of the Maison du Punjab, army aviation and additional resources are deployed in the most affected areas. The CM has been informed that 72 villages in Kasur and more than 150,000 people and 35,000 cattle have already been moved to safe areas. The emergency camps offer medical and veterinary services, with more than 2,600 patients currently treated.

The floods have devastated large expanses of Kasur, Okara, Pakpattan, Vehari, Bahawalnagar and Bahawalp, affecting more than 125 villages collectively. Rescue materials, including 130 boats, 1,300 life jackets, 6 ambulance bikes and 245 life rings, were sent.

In addition, the NDMA has also issued early warnings for a new precipitation spell expected between August 29 and September 9, in particular the watershed already struggling with floods.

Earlier, the Minister of Planning Ahsan Iqbal accused India of aggravating the floods in Pakistan by releasing water in the relays instead of sharing information in a timely under the industrial water Treaty.

River levels remain high

The water levels in the main rivers and tanks of Pakistan remain critically, the inputs exceeding 1.2 million cuses and flood waters continue to move downstream in the Punjab. The authorities reported both large -scale evacuations and in -depth rescue efforts while the concerns were up to the safety of communities along the Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej rivers.

According to the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), the Tarbela Indus river has recorded an influx of 240,000 brackets and outings of 245,400 CUSCS.

In Mangla on the Jhelum, Flow was 34,000 brackets and outings of 8,000 brackets. Chashma saw inputs of 326,600 brackets and outings of 329,000 brackets, while at the Marala head on the Chenab, the entries reached 107,500 cuses against 89,500 cuses.

In Nowshera, the Kabul River recorded 39,400 cuses both in the entrances and outputs.

The reservoirs remained under pressure, Tarbela at 1,549 feet containing 5.67 million acres (MAF), the mangla at 1,220.95 feet also containing 5.67 MAF and Chashma at 647 feet with 0.21 MAF.

The commuters look at the Ravi river from a bridge while the government announced an alert of the floods in the river areas of the province of Punjab, in Lahore on August 27, 2025. Photo: AFP

The combined storage usable through Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma was 11.55 MAF. Since April 1, however, 11.8 MAF of water – estimated at $ 11 billion – have sunk in the sea.

The Indus has borne the largest volume to the sea, with reported flooding conditions from Chashma downstream to Kotri. In Sukkur, the liberation reached 449,000 cuses; in GUDDU, 312,000 CUSECS; in Taunsa, 345,000 Cuses; And in Kalabagh, 271,000 brackets.

On the Chenab, the Marala head flow hit 902,000 Cusecases, while no dam exists to store its waters.

With an additional AFP input