ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar said on Monday that rescue, relief and restoration of affected areas of recent floods was a national obligation and the federal and provincial governments will work collectivey to fulfil this responsibility.
During a media briefing along with Minister for Climate Change Musaddiq Malik and Chairman National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Lieutenant General Inam Haider here, he said an important meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif today on the recent flood situation caused by monsoon rains.
The minister said the meeting thoroughly discussed the flood situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan and reviewed the ongoing rescue and relief activities in flood hit areas.
Attaullah Tarar said coordination was going on with the provincial governments in a better way.
He said that several meetings were held at the National Command and Control Center before the monsoon, in which representatives of all provincial governments participated.
“Data has been regularly provided by the NDMA to the relevant authorities through the Early Warning System,”Tarar remarked.
Efforts are being made at the national level to deal with the current situation and on the instructions of the Prime Minister, the NDMA is in touch with the provincial governments, Tarar said.
He said that rescue activities and relief supplies were being carried out in a vigorous manner and the federal government was playing its role under national responsibility.
He said that relief activities were being carried out by Armed Forces and several other organizations in floods and rain affected areas of KP, AJK.and Gilgit-Baltistan.
The minister said that Secretary Communications was already in Gilgit-Baltistan to supervise restoration of Skardu-Gilgit Road.
He said Chairman National Highway Authority was in Malakand Division and leading the efforts of restoration of roads.
Similarly, he said that Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan Engineer Amir Muqam was also in Bunair and monitoring the rescue and relief work.
Tarar said the Prime Minister has instructed the ministers for water,power and communications to ensure their presence in these areas for personally monitoring restoration work of infrastructure related to their respective ministries. –Agencies
