A high-level meeting was held here today to review the losses caused by heavy rains during the ongoing monsoon across Azad Kashmir

Muzaffarabad(indpenden report)21 August 2025
A high-level meeting was held here today to review the losses caused by heavy rains during the ongoing monsoon across Azad Kashmir.The meeting was chaired by the Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir, Chaudhry Anwar ul Haq, along with the Federal Minister for Water Resources, Mian Moin Wattoo.The Secretary, State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA), briefed the participants about relief and rehabilitation activities being carried out in the affected areas.He also highlighted the material losses caused by heavy rains across different districts of Azad Kashmir.The Secretary, Highways Department, and the Secretary, PDO, also shared updates on damages to roads, bridges, powerhouses, and other critical infrastructure.Addressing the meeting, Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwar ul Haq said that the monsoon rains had wreaked havoc in Azad Kashmir, which he said was unprecedented in the region’s history. Flash floods and landslides triggered by incessant rains, he noted, had severely damaged infrastructure.The Prime Minister appreciated the state administration and relevant departments for their exemplary efforts in providing immediate relief to victims and supporting rehabilitation during Operation Banyan Al Marsus as well as during the ongoing monsoon emergency.
He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to rebuild damaged infrastructure through its own ADP but emphasized that federal support was essential to restore already constructed projects.Speaking on the occasion, Federal Minister for Water Resources Mian Moin Wattoo conveyed that the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mian Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif, was personally monitoring the situation and had directed him to assess damages on the ground. He said the development and prosperity of Azad Kashmir remained a top priority for the Government and people of Pakistan.The Minister called for an immediate cost-estimate report to be submitted to the federal government so that reconstruction could begin without delay. He assured full cooperation from the federal government for the rehabilitation of affected people and damaged infrastructure.Earlier, the meeting was informed that projects of the Highways Department, Local Government, Education, Health, PDO, Irrigation, and Physical Planning in Azad Kashmir had been badly affected. The damages included roads, bridges, water supply schemes, school buildings, irrigation channels, health centers, and other vital facilities.The meeting was attended by Senior Minister Col. (R) Waqar Ahmed Noor, Ministers Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, Mian Abdul Waheed Advocate, Abdul Majid Khan, Chaudhry Azhar Sadiq, Diwan Ali Khan Chughtai, Nisar Ansar Abdali, Sardar Javed Ayub, Raja Muhammad Siddique, Ms. Taqdees Gilani, Chief Secretary Azad Kashmir Khushal Khan, IGP Rana Abdul Jabbar, Secretary Finance Islam Zeb, Secretary Highways and Public Works Zafar Mahmood Khan, Secretary SDMA Chaudhry Muhammad Farid, Secretary PDO Irshad Qureshi, Commissioner Muzaffarabad Division Chaudhry Guftar Hussain, DIG Muzaffarabad Region Yasin Qureshi, and other senior officials.