For 12 days, residents in different parts of Multan, Lodhran, and Bahawalpur districts have remained without homes because the government has been unable to plug the breaches in the Noraja Bhutta embankment along the Sutlej River.
Communities in Noraja Bhutta, Bahadurpur, Basti Lang, Kanu, and Dipal in Jalalpur Pirwala; Tarut Basharat, Daily Rajanpur, and Belaywala in Lodhran; and Dunyapur, Jhangra, and Muradpur Soiwala in Bahawalpur have been forced to live on the banks of the embankment because their homes are still flooded.
Muhammad Bakhsh, a resident of Basti Lang, stated that the water level in his union council is rising again and will continue to rise unless the Noraja Bhutta embankment is completely sealed. “We are also hearing about another medium-level flood in the Sutlej approaching Jalalpur Pirwala in a day or two, which would further increase the water level around our homes,” he said. He added, “We are also hearing that the government is plugging the Noraja Bhutta embankment, but the water has yet to recede from these areas.”
Ijaz Khan from the Tarut Bashart union council also noted that the water level was increasing due to the breaches. He said that while the government was placing heavy stones around the M-5 Motorway bridge to protect it, the water was not receding.
Multan Irrigation Department Chief Engineer Nawaz Bajwa told Dawn that three breaches in the Noraja Bhutta embankment were plugged to save Jalalpur Pirwala city. He also confirmed that they managed to save the primary gas pipeline to Punjab.
Punjab Minister for Irrigation Kazim Pirzada revealed that the recent floods have affected 70% and 90% of the population in Alipur and Jalalpur Pirwala, respectively. He stated that Jalalpur requires evacuation and Alipur needs a massive relief operation, with teams working around the clock to deliver essential supplies to affected towns like Sultanpur, Shahbazpur, and Seetpur.
River Flow Update
Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Director General Irfan Ali Kathia stated that the water flow in major rivers across Punjab has returned to normal levels, although a low-to-medium-level flood situation persists in the Sutlej River.
According to PDMA data, the Sutlej River is flowing at 95,000 cusecs at Ganda Singh Wala and 81,000 cusecs at the Suleimanki point. The Chenab River’s flow is 55,000 cusecs at Marala, reducing to 24,000 cusecs at Khanki Headworks and 29,000 cusecs at Qadirabad. The flow at Head Trimmu was 35,000 cusecs, and at Panjnad Headworks, it was 118,000 cusecs. Meanwhile, the Ravi River had lower readings: 6,000 cusecs at Jassar, 9,000 cusecs at Shahdara, 30,000 cusecs at Head Sidhnai, and 28,000 cusecs at Balloki Headworks.
