Islamabad 3rd of September : Pakistan is currently suffering from the most devastating catastrophe caused by climate change in recent times of the world Federal Minister of Planning Ahsan Iqbal said here on Saturday.The Minister made this statement in a press conference after the inaugural session of the newly established National Flood Response and Coordination Centre (NFRCC), Samaa TV reported.
This year, monsoon ravaged regions of the nation that typically don’t get much rain and areas that typically receive heavy rainfall were spared this time around.
“Pakistan took the brunt of 500 percent more rainfall than the average of 30 years,” the Minister highlighted in his remarks, noting that it led in floods that were severe in the entire region, Samaa TV reported.
“The magnitude of the latest disaster afflicted by Pakistan is comparable to the devastation caused by the hurricane Katrina in the US which left the world’s biggest power power unable to respond in the of the ravages of natural disasters.”
He believed that the nation will confront the challenges with determination and overcome it with the support of people.
The Minister also noted that certain regions of Sindh and Balochistan that typically receive less than 40mm of rain, were hit with about 1,500 millimetres of downpour , resulting in massive losses.
He added that a number of parts of South Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan were also affected because of torrential rains and subsequent floods, Samaa TV reported.
Ahsan stated that a major chunk of damage was caused by flash floods that occurred after rains ravaged the region.
“Hill torrents destroyed more than a million homes and damaged the 5,000km of roads,” he maintained.
The slide presentation given by the minister highlighted that in total , 34 districts in Balochistan that cover more than 1.2 million acres were affected of inundation, of which Lasbella was the hardest hit.
As of Saturday at least 1,265 people had died in the devastating floods that have hit the country since mid-June.
According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) 12,577 people were injured, while 326,680 homes have been destroyed, and 3,766 livestock died.
The NDMA reported that 169,676 individuals have been rescued from the beginning of the crisis.They also said that 627,793 are currently staying in the camps.
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