Floods affect 1.2 million, displace nearly 250,000 in eastern Pakistan
[August 28, 2025]
By BABAR DOGAR and MUNIR AHMED
NAROWAL, Pakistan (AP) — Rescuers in boats raced to reach stranded
families in Pakistan’s populous eastern Punjab province Thursday, after
three major rivers burst their banks because of heavy rain and the
release of water from overflowing dams in neighboring India.
The floods displaced nearly 250,000 people and officials said more than
1 million people were affected, with crops and businesses destroyed and
many unable to leave their homes.
At least 15 people were killed a day earlier in Gujranwala district and
nearby villages, according to police. Forecasters said more rain was
expected Friday, after a two-day pause, and could continue into next
week.
Provincial minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said floods hit 1,432 villages
located along the Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab rivers, affecting about 1.2
million people and displacing 248,000 others.
Nearly 700 relief and 265 medical camps have been set up in the
flood-hit areas, she said, adding that food and other essential supplies
are being delivered to flood-hit areas.
Floods have killed more than 800 people in Pakistan since late June.
In Indian-controlled Kashmir’s Jammu region, some of the heaviest rains
in decades for the month of August have wrought havoc, triggering flash
floods and landslides that also hit two Hindu pilgrimage routes in the
Himalayan areas.
Homes have been submerged and roads and bridges damaged, forcing Indian
authorities to evacuate thousands of people living in flooded areas. At
least 115 people have been killed and scores injured.

In Pakistan, it is also the first time in 38 years that the Ravi, Sutlej
and Chenab rivers have been in high flood simultaneously, forcing rescue
workers to intensify operations across multiple districts, according to
the provincial irrigation department.
Some families said they were still waiting for government help.
“My family on the rooftop of our house waited for two days for the
arrival of a boat,” said Zainab Bibi, 54, as she sat along a road
surrounded by floodwater in Narowal district. She admitted to ignoring
an earlier government alert because she thought floods would never hit
her village, located kilometers (miles) away from the river.
Farmer Mohammad Saleem, 47, said floods from across the Indian border
swept away his home and belongings before his family could escape their
village in Narowal district. His 38-year-old wife, Kaneez Bibi, said the
floods swept away the dowry she had prepared for their eldest daughter’s
wedding planned for November.
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A resident retrieves belongings from his flooded home due to rising
water level in Ravi River after torrential rains at a low-lying area
on the outskirts of Lahore, Pakistan, Aug. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/K.M.
Chaudary)

In Pakistan's Punjab province, mass evacuations began earlier this
week after heavier-than-usual monsoon rains and the release of water
from overflowing dams in India triggered flash floods in low-lying
border regions.
In a statement, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif credited
“timely evacuations” with saving lives. She said advance
preparations and the demolition of illegally-built structures along
waterways had helped prevent large-scale casualties in what
officials describe as the province’s worst flood emergency in
decades.
“No displaced person should be without food and medical help in the
flood-hit areas,” she told officials during a meeting to review the
situation. “Try your best to prevent the spread of water-borne
disease among the flood-affected people,” she warned.
Pakistan's Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, on a visit to the
flood-hit city of Narowal, accused India of deliberately releasing
excessive amounts of water from its dams without timely warnings. He
said New Delhi violated a key water treaty that it suspended earlier
this year after the killing of 26 tourists in Indian-controlled
Kashmir. India blamed Pakistan-based militants for the attack, an
accusation Islamabad denied.
Iqbal said “The release of water in such an enormous volume amounts
to water aggression, and India did it, and we are seeing flood
devastations."
There was no immediate comment from New Delhi.
Floods in Narowal also submerged the shrine of Guru Nanak, located
near the Indian border, but rescuers evacuated the staff and
pilgrims quickly.
In 2022, catastrophic floods linked to climate change killed nearly
1,700 people in Pakistan.
___
Ahmed reported from Islamabad. Associated Press writers Asim Tanveer
in Multan, Pakistan, Aijaz Hussain in Srinagar, India, and Ishfaq
Hussain in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan, contributed to this report.
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