On Wednesday, the government of Baluchistan declared 32 of the country’s 34 provincial districts to be “calamity-hit,” and Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman hinted that at least $10 billion would be required to rebuild climate resilient infrastructure to mitigate the effects of global warming.
Advisor to the Balochistan chief minister Mir Ziaullah Langove, along with Chief Secretary Abdul Aziz and Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Naseer Ahmed Nasar, reported at a press conference that at least 254 people had died and 1.3 million had been displaced since June’s monstrous rains began.
Officials reported that the record floods were particularly devastating in at least 10 districts, including Quetta, Nasirabad, Jaffarabad, Sohbatpur, Jhal Magsi, Bolan (Kachhi) Khuzdar, Lasbela, Qila Saifullah, and Qila Abdullah.
Mr. Langove reported that 29,000 people had been rescued and that 185,000 homes had been damaged and that 64,000 homes had been destroyed due to the floods. He also reported that the floods had caused the deaths of 500,000 animals.
He stated that the government and non-governmental organizations had distributed enough food for 98,000 individuals to last a month and that 40,000 tents had been distributed to flood victims. He also said that at least 150,000 tents would be required.
According to Chief Secretary Abdul Aziz, the government has compensated the families of 170 persons who died in flood-related accidents with Rs2 million apiece, and the cases of the other casualties will be resolved in the coming days.
Several major routes, he said, would reopen to traffic within three to four days thanks to the efforts of the NHA. The railroad bridge may not be usable again for weeks.
Irrigation department officials called the five districts of the Nasirabad division the “green belt” of Balochistan, but they were still underwater. At the same time, hundreds of families in the division’s rural areas were cut off because roads had been washed away. However, thanks to government helicopter missions, they now have access to food and water.
As of this writing, Quetta and seven other districts still lacked access to natural gas and electricity. On Tuesday, SSGC engineers began repairing the broken gas pipelines, and by Thursday, they had replaced the pipeline with a 12-inch diameter and were almost done with the main pipeline, which had a 24-inch diameter.
At the time this report was made, at least two-thirds of Balochistan still lacked electricity. “We need $10 billion to rebuild properly.” In Islamabad, Senator Sherry expressed concern about the spread of water-borne diseases in the areas hit by the floods.
At a press conference with Senator Shahadat Awan and Commerce Minister Syed Naveed Qamar, she announced that 72 of the country’s 160 districts were flooded and had been declared disaster zones. A total of 110 districts, or roughly half the country, were impacted by the floods, according to her estimates.
At least 33 million people require drinkable water, cooked meals, and basic medical care, Sherry Rehman stated. “We’re under-resourced, so please donate to reputable organizations.” We’ve redirected our money to help with the immediate disaster, including BISP cash payments. Insufficient. “We must stand united against this devastation,” she urged.
The senator added that reconstruction has begun but would be a tremendous task. Better rebuilding will need more than $10 billion.
