ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s disaster management authority on Sunday warned that the country’s Ravi River, a transboundary river crossing northwestern India and eastern Pakistan, was at the risk of experiencing “low floods” after India released about 185,000 cusecs of water from its Ujh Barrage.
Under the Indus Waters Treaty, which was brokered by the World Bank and signed between Pakistan and India in 1960, India has control over the waters of the three eastern rivers – the Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej – while Pakistan controls the waters of the three western rivers — the Indus, Chenab, and Jhelum.
“India has released approximately 185,000 cusecs of water from the Ujh Barrage [into] River Ravi,” the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) wrote on Twitter, citing the Pakistani Indus waters commissioner.
“As per flood limits of River Ravi at Jassar, LOW FLOOD in the flood plain areas is expected.”
Last year, the NDMA said, India had released 173,000 cusecs of water into the river, out of which 60,000 cusecs, which was approximately one-third of the released water, had flown to the Jassar town in the Narowal district of Pakistan’s Punjab province, causing low-level floods.
“Therefore, as per the PCIW, considering the previous record, approx 65,000 cusecs are expected to reach [Jassar] within the next 20-24 hours,” it said.
“The public is advised to stay informed and follow guidelines from relevant administrations.”
The authority said it had issued safety guidelines to deal with the possibility of floods, adding that local administration in vulnerable areas would be vigilantly monitoring the situation till July 20.
Relief agencies, backed by local administration of multiple districts, have set up camps along the river banks and canals to transport residents to safety in case of floods.
The flood warning comes at a time when Pakistan has been witnessing monsoon rains that have killed more than 50 people over the last two weeks.
The rains have returned to Pakistan a year after the climate-induced downpour swelled rivers and inundated at one point one-third of Pakistan, killing 1,739 people. The floods also caused $30 billion in damage in cash-strapped Pakistan in 2022.
Pakistan issues flood warning after India releases 185,000 cusecs of water into Ravi River
https://arab.news/29un7
Pakistan issues flood warning after India releases 185,000 cusecs of water into Ravi River
- Pakistan’s disaster management body says water may reach Punjab’s Jassar town within next 24 hours
- Relief agencies, local administrations set up relief camps to transport people to safety in case of floods
Pakistan’s Sharif congratulates Bangladesh PM hopeful on ‘resounding victory’ in election
- At 60, BNP’s Tarique Rahman is preparing to take charge of Bangladesh, driven by what he calls an ambition to ‘do better’
- The election comes nearly a year and half after the ouster of Sheikh Hasina in a deadly uprising in the South Asian nation
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday congratulated Tarique Rahman on the “resounding victory” of his Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) in parliamentary elections, saying that he looked forward to working closely with the new Bangladeshi leadership.
BNP’s media unit said on X Friday it had secured enough seats in Parliament to govern on its own, though rival group Jamaat-e-Islami raised concerns over delayed results. The final tally has not yet been announced by the Election Commission, but several local media outlets reported the BNP crossing the 151-seat threshold needed for a majority in the 300-member Parliament.
BNP is headed by the 60-year-old Rahman, its prime ministerial candidate who returned to Bangladesh in December after 17 years in self-exile in London. He is the son of former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who died in December.
“I extend my warmest felicitations to Mr. Tarique Rahman on leading the BNP to a resounding victory in the Parliamentary elections in Bangladesh,” Sharif said on X. “I also congratulate the people of Bangladesh on the successful conduct of the elections.”
Sharif’s statement comes amid Islamabad’s efforts to rebuild relations with Bangladesh, amid a thaw in relations between the two countries. Pakistan and Bangladesh were part of the same country until Bangladesh’s secession following a bloody civil war in 1971, an event that long cast a shadow over bilateral ties.
Both countries have moved closer since August 2024 following the ouster of Hasina, who was considered an India ally, in a mass uprising.
“I look forward to working closely with the new Bangladesh leadership to further strengthen our historic, brotherly multifaceted bilateral relations and advance our shared goals of peace, stability, and development in South Asia and beyond,” Sharif said.
