PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur said here on 28th August that provincial government paid Rs654 million as compensation to the families of 350 persons, who lost their lives due to recent floods, while pending cases involving minors were being processed through accounts opened by deputy commissioners.
In a video statement issued here, he talked about the provincial government’s relief and rehabilitation measures for flood victims. He said that since August 15, cloudbursts and heavy rains had devastated several districts including Buner, Swat, Shangla, Bajaur, Mansehra and Swabi.
The disaster claimed 406 lives, left 245 people injured, destroyed 664 houses and partially damaged another 2,431. A total of 511 roads, 77 bridges and 2,123 shops were also affected.
The chief minister said that as soon as the first cloudburst was reported in Bajaur, administration, rescue agencies and relevant departments were immediately mobilised. Their timely response enabled rescue of more than 5,500 people. A total of 2,061 rescue personnel with 176 vehicles and boats were deployed in the area while medical and relief teams reached there without delay.
He said that so far 136 link roads and 65 bridges were restored, more than 119,000 people were provided with cooked food, 125 trucks of relief goods were dispatched to affected areas and 70 medical camps were set up.
Mr Gandapur said that provincial government also enhanced compensation package for flood victims. The amount for families of deceased has been increased from Rs10 million to Rs20 million while compensation for injured has been doubled to Rs500,000. Owners of destroyed houses will now receive Rs1 million each and partially damaged homes will be compensated with Rs300,000.
For the first time, shopkeepers are also being compensated with Rs500,000 for destroyed shops and Rs100,000 for cleanup in cases where flood water entered. Farmers and livestock owners will also be covered under the package.
According to the chief minister, compensation worth Rs654 million has already been paid to the families of 350 deceased persons. Payment has also been made to 18 injured people, shopkeepers and thousands of families through food stamps while further disbursements worth billions of rupees are being prepared.
Mr Gandapur said that compensation was being provided through a digital payment system to ensure transparency and set a deadline of Sunday for completing payments to all affected families.
He said that senior secretaries were assigned to oversee relief operations in Hazara and Malakand divisions while additional officers, medical staff and mobile health units were deployed in affected districts. The government has so far released Rs6.5 billion to relief department and will soon release another Rs5 billion. Provincial cabinet members, lawmakers and government employees have also donated their salaries for flood victims, with funds being deposited in a special PDMA account.
The chief minister vowed not to rest until all victims were fully rehabilitated. He said that government would also relocate communities living in high-risk flood zones to safer areas. Children orphaned by the disaster, he added, would be looked after entirely by the provincial government.
Mr Gandapur also expressed solidarity with flood-affected people in Punjab, saying the KP government was ready to assist them in any way required.
Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2025
