— Says damage assessment will be conducted to estimate losses suffered during flash floods
—Â Calls for establishment of advanced warning system to mitigate future disaster risks
— Directs Minister for Communications to take immediate steps for infrastructure restoration
GILGIT: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday undertook a one-day visit to Gilgit Baltistan (GB) to meet victims of recent torrential rains and floods, announcing a Rs4 billion package for infrastructure restoration and distributing compensation cheques among affected families.
During his visit, the premier handed over Rs1 million compensation cheques to the next of kin of those who lost their lives in the calamity. Offering prayers for the deceased and speedy recovery of the injured, the prime minister said he had come to express solidarity with the flood victims.
“Pakistan is among the countries most affected by climate change,” PM Shehbaz said while addressing the check-distribution ceremony.
He called for the establishment of an advanced warning system to mitigate future disaster risks. “An early warning system is the need of the hour,” he stressed.
He lamented that no progress had been made on this front in the past seven years and expressed dissatisfaction that even in the past year and a quarter, significant development was lacking.
“I will ask ministers and secretaries why considerable work wasn’t done in this time,” he said, urging all relevant institutions to take coordinated measures to address these issues.
Reassuring the victims, PM Shehbaz pledged to continue visiting until all displaced persons were resettled. He also announced that a damage assessment would be conducted to estimate the losses suffered.
He directed the Minister for Communications to take immediate steps for infrastructure restoration and pledged that his next visit to the region would take place before the end of this month.
The premier further revealed that a 100-megawatt solar power project in the region would be completed this year. He added that a Daanish School would be inaugurated in the next visit, and another one would be established in Skardu.
Earlier, PM Shehbaz — accompanied Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, Minister for Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan Affairs Engineer Amir Muqam, Minister for Climate Change Dr Musadik Malik and Adviser Rana Sanaullah — touched down in GB on a day-long visit today and was briefed by Governor Mehdi Shah on the flood situation and damages caused by recent rains.
The PM was also informed about the progress of the ongoing development projects and the law and order situation in the region.
The premier’s visit comes on the heels of a series of tragedies caused by relentless monsoon rains, which have caused at least 299 fatalities, including 140 children, across the country.
In GB’s Babusar Valley, sudden flash floods triggered by cloudbursts swept away tourists and vehicles last week, killing at least six people and leaving several others missing.
In Chilas, Skardu and surrounding areas, more than 200 tourists were left stranded as landslides blocked major roads, including sections of the vital Karakoram Highway.
Rescue operations by the Pakistan Army and civil authorities managed to evacuate many of those trapped.
Additionally, the PM also met GB Chief Minister Gulbar Khan and discussed the law and order situation and development works in the region and also announced establishing Daanish Schools there.
Separately, providing details on the rescue efforts, GB government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq has said that the 14-day-long search operation ended after all vehicles were removed from the debris, and no trace of the missing persons could be found.
“Hopes of finding the missing persons who were swept away in the floods have extinguished,” Faraq said.
Speaking to journalists after arriving in GB, he called for measures to address climate change and expressed regret over the loss of life and property due to the rains.
Noting that the federal bodies were in contact with the GB government, the premier shed light on the issue of climate change and the threat that it posed.
“Every year we are affected by climate change [….] Measures to address climate change challenges are the need of the hour,” the PM said as he recalled the 2022 floods, and further added that the Ministry of Climate Change has been instructed to deal with the challenges in this regard.
Reviewing the devastation caused by recent rains in various areas of GB, the PM directed the relevant authorities to work diligently on disaster response and infrastructure resilience.
PM Shehbaz, while chairing a high-level meeting to assess the losses and damages caused by recent rains and cloud-burst incidents in Diamir and surrounding areas, said that the natural disaster resulted in extensive destruction and sadly claimed several lives.
Highlighting Pakistan’s minimal contribution to global emissions, the prime minister stressed that despite the fact that Pakistan contributed almost zero emissions, it was among the top ten nations most affected by climate change-induced disasters.
“Despite Pakistan’s near-zero emissions, we suffer huge devastation every year due to global warming,” he noted.
He further emphasised the importance of global climate conferences, directing the authorities to ensure active participation aimed at securing funds for building resilient infrastructure to combat future disasters.
The Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) has warned of widespread heavy rains starting Monday till August 7.
Azad Jammu and Kashmir and GB, as per the Met Office, are both likely to be hit by this new spell of cloudbursts.
PMD’s forecast comes as the country, during July 2025, witnessed 23% more rains as compared to the normal rainfall, while a 0.1°C increase was also witnessed in the average temperature during the month, The News reported on Monday.
The Met Office’s report said that climatologically, July was considered a rainy month with rainfall contribution to the national annual and seasonal July-September totals being 44.9% and 21.3%, respectively.
During the month, Pakistan experienced heavy to very heavy rainfall at AJK, GB, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.
The July 2025 with 77.7mm rainfall was above average with a positive anomaly of +23 per cent for Pakistan as a whole. Whereas a diverse situation was observed on a regional scale, Punjab with the 163.50mm (+57%) ranked 8th wettest (244.9mm rainfall recorded in 1978) and Gilgit Baltistan, with 20.20mm (+52%), both observed largely above average rainfall.
