Pakistan faces a looming disaster as India warns of fresh cross-border flooding from swollen rivers. With over 1 million already displaced, experts fear worsening devastation in Punjab’s flood-hit regions.
WEBDESK – AP – Pakistan is bracing for another wave of catastrophic flooding after India on Tuesday warned of releasing more water into rivers flowing toward its neighbor, raising fears of fresh devastation in Punjab.
The warning — delivered by New Delhi on “humanitarian grounds” through its high commission in Islamabad — came as heavy monsoon rains battered northern India, killing at least 10 people in the past 24 hours and pushing river levels beyond danger marks.
Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority confirmed that the surge is expected to hit the Sutlej River on Wednesday, threatening already flood-stricken districts including Kasur, Okara, Vehari and Bahawalnagar. More than 1 million people have been evacuated from Punjab, where nearly 2.5 million residents have been affected by relentless rains and river overflows in recent months.
Last month, India released water from its overflowing dams into low-lying Pakistani border regions, triggering mass evacuations. Officials in Lahore warned that the new surge could worsen the humanitarian crisis.
“The scale of destruction is already unprecedented, and more water inflow could prove disastrous,” a provincial rescue official said.
The Indus Waters Treaty, which normally governs cross-border water sharing, remains suspended amid deteriorating relations between the two nuclear-armed rivals. New Delhi instead conveyed the latest flood alert outside the framework of the treaty.
With the Yamuna River in New Delhi crossing danger levels and flash floods disrupting life across India’s Punjab state, Pakistan now stands on the frontline of a looming disaster.
