Soldiers deployed in northeastern Punjab province to assist civil administration in evacuating residents to safer areas
Pakistani authorities have deployed the army to northeastern Punjab province to assist with rescue and relief operations as the province faces a flood emergency caused by heavy rains and India's release of water from overflowing dams.
New Delhi has warned Islamabad of expected high inflows in the Sutlej, Ravi, and Chenab rivers.
The army was deployed at the request of the Punjab government to assist the civil administration in evacuating residents from districts facing severe floods.
According to an official notification, troops have been deployed in Lahore, Okara, Narowal, Faisalabad, and Sialkot, among other districts.
Over 200,000 people have already been evacuated from flood-affected areas, and more evacuations are planned for several other areas that are expected to be hit by raging floods, said National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik at a news briefing in Islamabad on Wednesday.
Floodwaters have inundated low-lying areas and submerged houses, shops, and roads in Wazirabad, Sialkot, and Gujranwala.
According to Pakistan army spokesman Lt.-Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, a rescue operation is underway in several flood-stricken areas, including Kartarpur town near the Indian border, which is home to the Kartarpur Temple, one of the Sikh religion's two most sacred sites.
Local broadcasters showed footage of the temple's sprawling courtyard and other areas being inundated by floodwaters, leaving dozens of people stranded inside the compound.
Pakistan's Water Resources Ministry warned that a “high flood” could hit several Punjab districts as water levels continue to rise in all three rivers.
According to the Press Trust of India, New Delhi issued fresh alerts to Pakistan on Wednesday "about the high probability of flooding in the Tawi River, with incessant rainfall in the northern states forcing the release of excess water from major dams."
The NDMA warned that a fresh wet spell is likely to begin on Friday in various parts of the country.
India and Pakistan have been battered by relentless monsoon rains and flooding in recent weeks, with nearly 500 people killed in Pakistan since Aug. 14, mostly over 400 in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, while more than 800 have lost their lives across Pakistan since June 26.
According to officials, thousands of residents also remained stranded for the last several days in the Gilgit-Baltistan region after torrential rains and floods washed away several roads in the Ghizer district.
