PESHAWAR/NOWSHERA: Eight persons were killed and three others injured due to rain and flood-related incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the past 24 hours.
According to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), relief operations were ongoing in flood-affected districts and all available resources were being utilized to provide relief to the flood affectees.
The PDMA spokesman said that 116 relief camps had been established for flood victims throughout the province, adding 77 camps were established in Nowshera district wherein 25,000 people were being provided food and other basic facilities.
Similarly, 11 camps have been established in Dera Ismail Khan in which basic needs were being provided to 25,000 people, while the district administration had established 17 relief camps in Charsadda and seven in Dir Upper, two each in Malakand and Mansehra.
According to PDMA Director General Sharif Hussain, relief operations were ongoing in the flood-affected districts and provincial government was making all-out efforts to provide relief to the flood victims.
A flood emergency and response center had been established in Abbottabad district, in which all the government agencies will be present round the clock to provide relief to the flood victims.
Relief camps had been set up at different places in Mansehra, in which the flood victims were being provided food and drink items and essential equipment.
Three people, including two Bulgarian women, have been rescued in a rescue operation by the district administration in Upper Kohistan.
In Lower Kohistan, 600 packages had been delivered to the affected families by helicopter in various villages. 178 people were rescued and shifted to safe places by helicopter in Dir Upper, 14 in Chitral Upper and 210 in Dir Upper.
Medical assistance had been provided to 6,149 people. 10,660 food packages had been provided to different people. NFI kits had been distributed among 10 families during the last 24 hours in these areas.
On the instructions of K-P Chief Minister Mahmood Khan, PDMA released an additional amount of Rs220 million to 11 flood-affected districts.
According to DG PDMA Sharif Hussain, Rs30 million had been released for Kohistan Lower and Tank each, Rs20 million for Nowshera and Chitral each, while Rs1.5 million had been released for Shangla district, Rs10 million for Buner district, and Rs20 million for Dir Upper.
Similarly, Rs10 million for Malakand, Rs2 million for Swat district, Rs2.5 million for Lakki Marwat and Rs2 million had been released for Dir Lower.
PDMA had released Rs850 million to different district administrations since July to till date to deal with the situation.
Livestock badly hit by floods
In addition to humans and material losses, the August 27 devastating floods have made havoc to livestock and poultry sectors in Khyber Pakthunkhwa where over Rs2 billion losses were estimated by the livestock department till date.
Breaking the 30 years floods record, the devastating flood that started from Kalam Swat and passed through different districts including Dir, Malakand, Mohmand, Charsadda, Nowshera and DI Khan had swept away hundreds of thousands of buffalo, cows, sheep, goats and poultry inflicted colossal losses to farmers and livestock growers.
Destroying poultry and livestock shelters and farms, the gushing water has inflicted damages to 727,144 livestock in the country including 202,593 in Punjab, 500,000 in Balochsitan, 15,008 in Sindh, 8,771 in Khyber Pakthunkhwa, 772 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir since June 14 till August 29, 2022.
Livestock and poultry sectors in Swat, Dir, Charasadda, Nowshera, Tank and DI Khan were badly hit by flood water of rivers Swat, Punjkora, Khayail, Kabul and Sindh, taking away shelters of animals and poultry in a jiffy.
“I had received prior information about floods threat, however, I did not take it seriously as night was around the corner,” Muhammad Sohail, a livestock farmer of flood hit Mohib Banda village of Nowshera told APP.
“Alas, I should have taken the flood threat issued by the district administration seriously and avoid huge financial loss by saving my buffalo from being washed away in flood water in River Kabul,” the 28 years old cattle farmer told APP with sobbing eyes.
Inheriting the painstaking cattle farming business from his father late Sardar Khan who established a big cattle farm on the bank of southern side of River Kabul in Mohib Banda due to availability of large chunk of grazing lands suitable for cattle farming said, “I have lost everything as these buffalos were the main source of income for my family.”
“When I woke up and rushed towards my cattle farms, I found that my animals and cattle farm was washed away by the flash water of River Kabul following with over three lakh cusec water in that fateful day,” he said, adding this was saddest movement of my life as I could not found any clue of my animals as eight to 10 feet water that had submerged areas spreading in miles.
Pinning high hope on the Prime Minister’s relief cash program, Sohail said this cash assistance would immensely help recover his losses to a great extent and he would be able to reestablish his business with financial support of his relatives and Govt.
Dr Alamzaib Khan, Director General, Livestock and Poultry Department, Govt of Khyber Pakthunkhwa said the damages to livestock and poultry sectors caused by the floods were beyond of our imagination. “We have started a comprehensive survey to assess financial losses caused by floods to livestock and poultry sector and as per initial reports losses of over Rs2 billion were so far incurred to these key sectors.
He said the scale of losses to these sectors would be higher than estimations as many valleys in Kalam, Bahrain, Madyan, Kohistan, Kumrat, Dir Upper, and Dir Lower were still out of reach of officials of his department due to destruction of roads and bridges by the devastating floods.
Dr Alamzaib said floods in River Sindh and Koh-e-Suleman starting from South and North Waziristan and adjoining valleys have also brought havoc to livestock and poultry sectors.
Besides commercial poultry in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he said that pastoral and nomads have bore the brunt of livestock and poultry in upper areas of Dasu, Kolas Palai, Dubair and others valleys in Kohistan districts and compilation of their damages was a big challenge due to destruction of roads networks by floods.
He said data of livestock damage was being shared with the Secretary Agriculture and Livestock as well as Provincial Disasters Management (PDMA) on regular basis and onward to National Disasters Management Authority (NDMA).
The Director General said the department would promptly act on the government’s policy regarding flood damages to livestock and poultry sectors and would provide compensation to all affected farmers subject to approval of the government.
Dr Alamzeb said prices of meat and milk was being closely monitored in open market in the wake of devastating floods and strict action would be taken against shopkeepers involved in artificial price hike and hoarding. He said the cooked meat and boiled milk of the lumpy skin disease animals were safe for human consumption and people’s should not pay heed to rumors.
