In view of the prevailing weather situation, the government of Punjab has issued instructions to the DCOs of all the districts to recheck the action plan evolved by the agencies and departments in the districts to ensure full preparedness to face any eventuality and to lessen the miseries of the people.
According to an official, Brigadier Syed Ghazanfar Ali, Secretary Relief and Crisis Management Department Punjab, has on Thursday directed the DCOs to ensure removal of the solid waste after cleanliness of open drains by Wasa, reactivation of Combined Taskforces, immediate contact with local army units designated for relief duty in the concerned district and timely warning system and mechanism for wide local publicity. The secretary was of the view that there was a very strong possibility of heavy rains causing flesh flood during current monsoon, as happened in the third week of June 2007 in various districts of the Punjab like Lahore City faced on June 17 where 75 mm rain was recorded in an about six hours span.
He asked the DCOs to pay special attention towards desilting of roadside drains, cleanliness of open drains and sewerage system, availability of dewatering sets in sufficient numbers, and physical testing of them in term of their operational capacity. The officers have also asked to send immediately, through fax, a report on the prescribed format regarding loss of life and damage caused to the property, due to any calamity in order to apprise the National Disaster Management Authority, PM Secretariat, Islamabad and the Chief Minister Punjab.