Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday directed the relevant authorities to provide financial assistance to the families affected by the recent monsoon rains and floods. The order was confirmed by the Prime Minister’s Office. Shehbaz issued the directives while chairing a meeting on monsoon damage. He specifically called for financial assistance to the families of those who lost loved ones in the floods and those whose houses were partially or fully destroyed.
Top Highlights
- PM directs financial aid to families affected by floods
- Ministers, secretaries to visit hit areas, speed up relief
- Already delivered 615 tonnes of relief goods nationwide
- NDMA registers 164 deaths from June 26 to August 21
- Upper, central Pakistan to get fresh rain, flash flooding till weekend
وزیراعظم محمد شہباز شریف کی زیرِ صدارت ملک میں حالیہ مون سون بارشوں اور ان سے ہونے والے نقصانات کے حوالے سے اجلاس
وزیراعظم کی حالیہ بارشوں اور سیلاب سے متاثرہ خاندانوں کی مالی معاونت کی ہدایت
سیلاب میں جاں بحق ہونے والے تمام افراد کے خاندانوں کی مالی معاونت کی جائے، وزیراعظم pic.twitter.com/4t1RUmN1T6
— Shehbaz Digital Media (@ShehbazDigital) August 22, 2026
PM pushes for quicker restoration, relief
Shehbaz directed that power supply be restored and roads rehabilitated as soon as possible. He asked federal ministers and secretaries to visit affected areas, assess damage on the ground and start rehabilitation work without delay. He also ordered the supply of basic food and other relief materials to the areas that are still cut off and not reachable.
Prime Minister said that the National Disaster Management Authority and Provincial District Management Authorities should be fully prepared. More rain and flooding are possible in the coming days, and he wants relief systems in place for the next wave.
Briefing Reveals Relief Efforts Already Underway
The meeting received a detailed briefing on this year’s monsoon impact, and the relief work carried out so far by NDMA and the provinces. Officials told him that flood-affected people across the country had been moved to safer places in time. He was also informed that over 615 tonnes of relief material had already reached affected areas and more was on the way.
Rehabilitation work is under way in Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the briefing said. Officials also said early warning systems are still working in the northern areas. Those systems have already helped several residents evacuate to safety before the floodwaters arrived.
More Rain on the Way As Death Toll Rises
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said 164 people have died across Pakistan during this year’s monsoon season from June 26 to August 21. In the short term, the numbers could keep rising. More rain, wind and thunderstorms are forecasted in the upper and central parts of the country over the weekend, with a warning of possible urban and flash flooding from the Met Office on Friday.
The Met Office said continuous monsoon flows are entering upper and central Pakistan, along with a westerly wave, bringing rain from August 22 to August 23 with intermittent breaks. Rain, wind, and isolated heavy downpours are expected in major cities of Punjab, including Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Sargodha, Faisalabad, and Multan. The forecast track includes the Hazara, Malakand, Peshawar, Mardan, Kohat and Dera Ismail Khan divisions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The system will also cover the entire Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir region, including Muzaffarabad and Mirpur.
Sindh and Balochistan are likely to remain mostly hot and humid; however, isolated dust-thunderstorm/rain may occur in Kalat and Zhob divisions in Balochistan. As more weather looms, the next few days will test how fast the relief and rehabilitation efforts already underway can keep pace.
