Heavy flood in rivers Swat and Kabul has inundated two villages in district Peshawar, displacing around 150 people and destroyed standing crops over a large area. Troops have been deployed in the area to help the affected people and shift them to safe places.
At Nilavey and Khan Pure villages, some 15 to 16 houses were destroyed completely. However, no casualty was reported. "Water level was on the constant rise in the rivers," Deputy Relief Commissioner, Ghulam Jillani has said reportedly.
The relief commission in the province has warned the residents of the three districts of Nowshera, Mardan and Charsadda, living on the bank of the Kabul River, of possible heavy floods and advised them to vacate their houses as pre-emptive measures for monsoon floods.
Abdul Wali Yousafzai, a spokesman of the Irrigation Department said here that the water level in the river had reached an 'alarming point' and about 84,000 cusecs water was flowing in the river. The water level was also getting higher in the Swat River at Aman Dara and Munda, and a flow of nearly 29,000 cusecs water was recorded till the filing of this report.
He said it was during 1960 that first flood in the river had brought havoc to the lives of the poor population residing nearby. This year the hilly areas had got heavy snow that had started melting, causing an increasing water level in the rivers, the spokesman added.
"To prevent damages to the extent possible, the provincial relief commissioner has already directed the concerned officials to take needed steps to minimise the loss to property, life and infrastructure," the deputy relief commissioner has said.
All the illegal encroachments and unauthorised obstructions built around the rivers bed and banks might be removed to avoid losses to human life and properties, the spokesman added.
Strict measures are imperative in areas like, Sardaryab, Naguman, Swat, Jenday, Khiali, Kabul and Indus to avert any untoward incident, he said. The villages of Mathra and Daudzai including Adazai, Mathra, Pir Bala, Daudzai, Takhatabad in district Peshawar, Sardaryab area in district Charsadda and Akora Khattak area in district Nowshera were under threat of flood. These are places where floods may cause maximum damage to life and property, he warned.