Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Thursday held a meeting with Federal Minister for Climate Change Dr Musadik Malik to review climate resilience measures, flood preparedness and coordination mechanisms ahead of the monsoon season.
Senior Provincial Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb presented the Punjab Climate and Disaster Resilience Plan 2026 and gave a detailed briefing. The meeting agreed on establishing an early warning system for forecasting extreme weather events through coordination between the federal and Punjab governments.
Participants also discussed the installation of centralised information screens across Punjab districts in collaboration with the federal government. It was agreed that coordination between relevant authorities would begin at least six hours before any extreme weather event. A proposal to install climate and flood-related centralised information screens at district and tehsil levels was also reviewed.
The chief minister directed the authorities concerned to immediately start mock exercises for monsoon and flood preparedness and instructed the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) to strengthen coordination with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). She also directed officials to ensure controlled tourism during periods of extreme heat and heavy rainfall and ordered the issuance of comprehensive advisories on expected rainfall and heatwave zones.
CM Punjab directed the authorities to enhance district-level logistics for responding to floods and other severe weather events. She said that despite last year’s large-scale floods, no epidemic had broken out in the province.
She said flood-affected people had been provided with medicines, food, drinking water, shelter and sanitation facilities, adding that no disease outbreak had occurred among either humans or livestock during the floods. She said Clinics on Wheels and field hospitals had been deployed to facilitate affected communities.
The chief minister said PDMA and Rescue 1122 had been upgraded on modern technical lines. She said the provincial government was investing billions of rupees to enhance water storage capacity. She added that WASA and solid waste management services, once limited to Lahore, had now been expanded across the province, with WASA established in every district.
She said machinery for tackling urban flooding had previously been dispatched from Lahore and other major cities, but every district had now been provided with modern equipment and operational fleets.
Referring to changing weather patterns, CM Maryam Nawaz said the frequency of severe and unpredictable climate events had increased alarmingly.
Federal Minister Dr Musadik Malik said Punjab had carried out exemplary work under the leadership of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif and that even her strongest political opponents acknowledged the government’s performance.
He said the pace of work in Punjab had compelled critics to appreciate the government’s achievements. He expressed his personal desire to work with the chief minister on environment and climate-related initiatives and said significant progress had been made in environmental protection, climate action and disaster management.
He said although there had been limited time to respond to last year’s flood situation triggered by what he termed Indian water aggression, Punjab had performed effectively. He commended Rescue 1122, PDMA and other provincial institutions for their efforts during the floods.
Federal Minister said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had directed all provincial governments to work jointly on climate change planning under the federal government’s “Fix, Expand and Build” policy, assuring Punjab of full federal support.
Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said timely intervention by the chief minister had prevented the flood situation from worsening and credited her leadership with ensuring round-the-clock rescue and relief operations. She said, unlike previous years, the government had adopted a proactive approach by alerting all departments well before the monsoon season.
During the meeting, a detailed overview of the 2025 flood response in Punjab was presented. Officials informed the meeting that a high-level committee had been formed in September comprising all relevant departments and was working on disaster management at two levels.
The briefing said that, for the first time, comprehensive surveys had been conducted to assess flood losses and compensation had been paid in full. It added that the government was implementing short-, medium- and long-term plans to address climate change and natural disasters and had prepared a comprehensive three-year strategy.
Officials informed the meeting that Punjab had introduced the country’s first climate-tagged budget. During the 2025 floods, around three million people and 2.5 million livestock had been rescued.
The meeting reviewed reports on compensation payments to flood victims, restructuring of PDMA and modernisation of the irrigation, communication and works, agriculture and livestock departments.
The briefing stated that all flood-damaged irrigation infrastructure in Punjab had been fully restored, vulnerable points had been mapped and the capacity of barrages had been enhanced. Province-wide alerts were being issued for heatwaves and other severe weather events, while fodder, water, medicines and mobile veterinary dispensaries had been deployed in vulnerable districts.
Officials said the Livestock and Dairy Development Department had also been restructured, Rescue 1122 had received modern navigation systems and its technology, operational capacity and human resources had been upgraded.
The meeting reviewed a detailed monsoon preparedness activity chart and measures taken to strengthen PDMA. It was informed that union council-level field formations and warehouses had been established in vulnerable districts.
The briefing said all provincial departments were working together under a “One Government Flood Management” framework and that work on the Jalalpur Flood Protection Bund would be completed by July 31.
Participants also reviewed procurement plans for modern disaster response equipment and progress on post-flood restoration. Photographic evidence of restoration work on the Jalalpur Flood Protection Bund, Nooraja Bhatta Flood Bund and Chandarban Flood Bund was presented.
NDMA Chairman told the meeting that Punjab had procured modern water rescue drones and had carried out extensive district-level flood preparedness measures.
A detailed briefing on the monsoon outlook, flash floods, cloudbursts and riverine flooding said lists of districts vulnerable to floods and heatwaves had been shared with PDMA and district disaster management authorities.
Officials warned that heavy rainfall in northern areas and snowmelt could increase flood risks, while climate change had contributed to more frequent cloudbursts and flash floods.
The meeting also reviewed temperature and pre-monsoon outlook reports. Officials said there was a risk of flooding in the Chenab, Sutlej and Ravi rivers in the event of Indian water aggression.
According to the briefing, southern Punjab, Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Sargodha and Mandi Bahauddin remained the districts most affected by heatwaves. It added that 18 deaths had so far been reported nationwide due to the ongoing heatwave.
The NDMA chairman informed the meeting that all climate-vulnerable districts had been issued advance warnings. A detailed survey of flood protection embankments across Punjab had begun, while round-the-clock coordination between the Punjab government and NDMA remained in place.
First responders, NGOs, Rescue 1122, the military and trained volunteers had been placed on alert. Cleaning of drains and waterways across the province was continuing, while unusual rainfall was forecast for Chakwal, Talagang and the Potohar region.
The briefing warned that unseasonal rainfall and cloudbursts could trigger localised flooding in vulnerable districts, while flooding was also possible in the Koh-i-Suleman range and Rod Kohi system areas.