PM Shehbaz reviews monsoon preparedness with NDMA chief

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday met the Chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik, discussing preparations for monsoon rains in the country.

In a post on X, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) noted that PM Shehbaz directed the chairman regarding coordination with provincial governments and provincial disaster management authorities, which he said should be further improved amid the rains.

According to the PMO, PM Shehbaz was briefed on preparations regarding any emergency situation during the monsoon rains in the country, with the premier also informed about the progress in fully activating the early warning system and coordination with the Ministry of Climate Change in this regard.

In a meeting earlier this month, PM Shehbaz had ordered the formation of a federal emergency response committee. He had also directed Climate Change Minister Musadik Malik and the NDMA chairman to undertake emergency visits to all provinces, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), and Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) to review preparedness for the monsoon season.

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The meetings came after the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) announced that a fresh monsoon spell was set to begin in the country from the first week of July. The department had stated that a westerly wave was likely to enter the upper parts of the country from June 30, while moist currents from the Arabian Sea continuously penetrated the eastern and central parts of the country.

The department warned that the weather may damage infrastructure, such as solar panels, electric poles and billboards. It also indicated a possibility of landslides in vulnerable areas of upper Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B), and Kashmir.

It further warned of urban/flash flooding in Islamabad/Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Nowshera, Sialkot, Narowal, Gujranwala, Lahore and Faisalabad, advising citizens to remain cautious.