PM unveils relief package, waives power bills for flood-hit households

• Government to refund bills already paid by victims.
• Losses in agriculture, commerce, industry under assessment.
• PM vows complete rehabilitation of displaced flood victims.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday announced a relief package for flood victims, saying that the recent rains and flooding had caused severe human and material losses.

In a televised message to the nation, the premier said the devastation had been widespread, and the government was fully aware of the difficulties being faced by the people.

“Helping the flood victims is our duty,” the premier stressed, adding that instructions had been issued to electricity distribution companies to take immediate measures.

Under the relief package, one month’s electricity bills of residential consumers in flood-affected areas have been waived. For commercial and industrial consumers, the collection of August bills has been postponed.

The federal government will bear the cost of the waived bills, while those who had already paid will be refunded in their next billing cycle, PM Shehbaz noted.

PM Shehbaz added that the losses in the agricultural, commercial, and industrial sectors were also being assessed. He vowed that he would not rest until every displaced person was rehabilitated and able to return home.

The premier said that additional relief measures will be taken if the assessment reveals losses beyond a certain threshold. He said power distribution companies have been directed to act promptly on these instructions.

PM Shehbaz also reaffirmed his commitment to the complete rehabilitation of flood-affected areas. The premier assured the public that he will not rest until every individual impacted by the floods is fully rehabilitated.

The ongoing flash floods have killed at least 972 people so far, according to Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority.

The floods have destroyed crops, livestock and homes across Punjab province and are now pushing into Sindh, threatening fresh food inflation and deeper hardship in the cash-strapped South Asian nation.

Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javed said that more than 4,500 villages were inundated along the Ravi, Sutlej, and Chenab rivers in Punjab.

At least 2,334 villages were affected by the Chenab River floods, 1,482 by the Ravi, and 672 by the Sutlej, he added.

In total, 4.498 million people were impacted, of whom 2.451 million were safely evacuated.

Authorities also established 396 relief camps in the worst-hit districts, while nearly 1.91 million livestock were relocated to safer areas.